Life as a Snape
by Prongs97
Summary: Hermione just found out that she is the daughter of the one and only Potions master, Snape. How will she adjust to living with her new family and friends? And will she be able to do it while studying for school and fighting off the dark lord? R/R!  : I promise the story is better than this summary!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of this story besides my plot, and the OC's you'll meet later on. ;) For a full list, check out my page!**

**A/N: Hey guys! Prongs here! Just a quick note before I let you guys read on. I am a new writer, so please; feel free to comment on my work, just no flames, ok? **

**And for those of you who have read this chapter before, you can admit it kinda sucked, so I went back and edited it, and for those of you who didn't, well, lucky you. **** You get to read the much better version of the chapter! **

**Well, that's it from me! Please enjoy my story!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 1

Evening approaches, as the sunset begins to fall over the rolling hills, it's just too bad you can't see it over the modernized landscape scattered with comfortable looking houses and apartments. But one certain apartment, looking utterly ordinary, lays a secret society. And lounging inside, rests the fate of the wizarding world. Relaxing in the living room of the Order of the Phoenix, two best friends sit together, the two competing against each other in a battle against the wit, although the third friend unseen anywhere. The competition drawing near a close as one makes the final move. 'Checkmate!' I exclaim triumphantly, as I finally move my rook into its final position, pinning the king in its final resting spot, marking the end of my match against Ron.

'Ah, I went easy on you Hermione,' Ron muttered, trying to hide his obvious embarrassment by hiding his pale, freckled face inside the nearest pillow, keen on not resurfacing until later.

'Yeah, sure you did Ron.' I mock him teasingly, getting up off the comfortable armchair, picking up the nearest book and started to read it. It's a good thing I always have my favorite book close at hand, _"Hogwarts, a History" _at close hand.

But before I get the chance to get into my book, loud, clobbering, rushing footsteps echoing from the fragile wooden staircase stopped me in my tracks, attracting my attention. 'Hermione!' a voice screams out, the voice reverberating on the walls of the hallway.

My eyes venture upward, confused, as I see a panting, disheveled looking Harry bolt into the room. 'Yeah Harry?' I asked him, while standing up and walking towards him, giving him support he needed as he reached towards the corner he stopped at.

'Snape... wants... to talk with you... about something... important.' Harry panted in between uneven breaths, trying everything in his power to get his breathing back under his control.

Ron looks up from his pouting session to observe the scene unraveling before him. 'Harry, you're out of breath just by running down here? Wow mate, you're more out of shape than I thought!' Ron joked, obviously not trying hard to contain his laughter at the obvious stress of his best friend by letting out roars of joy at the sight of Harry.

'Hey, you would be panting too if Kreacher chased you down twelve flights of stairs with a metal pan of death inches away from your stomach.' Harry spat, trying desperately to get his breathing back under his control as he has been trying to for the past several minutes.

'So where's Snape?' I ask, interrupting Ron's joking session, remembering why Harry was speeding down here in the first place, although I too found it hard to contain my laughter at Harry's distress.

'He's in the kitchen; he said it was really urgent that you come quickly. He said something about having important matters to discuss with you. Probably your flawless record in potions.' Harry answered; turning is back on me to go sit down.

'Ok. Thanks Harry, I guess I'll see you guys later.' I say walking towards the kitchen, when a thought comes to mind, a devious one at that. I stop, turn my head over my shoulder slightly, and smirk at Harry. 'Oh, and Harry?' I ask quickly, catching his attention. He looks up, his curious expression waiting for me to continue. 'I'm not supposed to say this, but Kreacher's hiding in that closet.' I say mysteriously, smirking while pointing to the nearest closest to Harry.

Harry's curious expression quickly morphs into one of sheer terror, as he jumps up onto the armchair with his legs beneath him, ready to spring at a moment's notice. 'OH MY G-D WHERE?! DOES HE HAVE THAT FRYING PAN WITH HIM?!' he screeches, cowering in the direction of the closet, as if he's waiting for Kreacher to fly out of it and hurt him.

His reaction is too much, my gut hurts from lack of air, and I double over laughing, the feeling of containment unable to be contained any longer. My arm finds a wall to support my falling weight, as my head rests on my arm. Harry's reaction had such an impact on me that tears start to pool around the rims of my eyes. Ron too must hold himself up against the wall to prevent himself from falling over, his laughter echoing mine. Unfortunate for Harry, that he stopped hyperventilating to figure out what I just said. 'That was SO not cool Hermione! You nearly gave me a bloody heart attack!'

I smirked again, feeling yet another moment to be a smart. 'Yeah, I would hope it would be a bloody heart attack, due to the fact that your heart controls the blood flow of your body.' I say arrogantly, showing off my knowledge. Ron snickered behind Harry.

'Just go see what Snape wanted.' Harry muttered angrily, trying to recover from his second shock of the day by waving me out of the room, turning away from me.

'Ok, see you guys later.' I laughing, waving goodbye to my best friends as I depart the living room.

'Bye Mione.' they both chorused simultaneously as I walked out and head towards the kitchen, where my potions master awaits me.

Walking down the hallway, I am soon met with a sight, Snape who looks like he has been pacing back and forth in the kitchen like a caged animal, stressed and impatient. From the pace he was going at and the anxious look that masked over his normally nonchalant guise, I'm surprised there wasn't a giant circle on the floor. He notices my arrival. 'Miss Granger!' He barks. 'About time, let's go.' Snape barks again, grabbing my wrist, ushering me out the door.

'Um, Sir, if you don't mind by me asking, but, where are we going?' I ask as I dig my heels in the ground to prevent myself from moving any further, hoping my confusion shows through my voice, not to mention my overwhelming curiosity on why he was pushing me out the door. But something in the back of my mind told me this was not some school field trip or that he was going to praise me on my potions record, especially since school is not going to start till another two week or so.

'We're going to your parents' house. That's the best place to deliver the news.' Snape snaps quickly, but there is a sense of uneasiness hidden in his normally malevolent voice.

_Wait, what? My parent's house? What is this about? Am I getting kicked out of Hogwarts?! What have I done wrong? I thought… I don't understand! _My thoughts are running wildly in my mind, my thoughts immediately going to the worst possible case scenario. 'Why?' I asked, still confused, this time, hearing a sense of urgency in my own voice.

He does not stop to answer my question. He just continues to shove me out the door until we are a good twenty meters in front of the entrance to the Order of the Phoenix. 'You'll find out soon enough. Take my hand.' He answered, finally coming to a halt, holding his hand out as if he's expecting me to take it without question.

Yeah, right, I was repulsed just by the mere thought of taking his hand, let alone actually taking that thing. Who knows? It could be covered in year old potion ingredients. 'Why Professor?' I ask, hoping my obvious repulsion was not evident in my voice. The last thing I needed was my least favorite professor ticked at me.

His eyebrow rises to his already sunken hairline, his expression slightly amused, but it was hard to see his amusement over his anxiousness. 'Do _you _know how to apparate?' he asks me, as it was the most obvious question in the world, but to both him and I, the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.

I could the embarrassment flood to my checks as I lower my head so I didn't have to meet his gaze. 'No.' I grumble, reluctantly taking his cool stone hand. And an instant later, I feel the unfamiliar sense of apparating whip me into a difference location.

And not a moment later, I feel reality hit me again. My professor landed gracefully on his feet due to his experience, but I on the other hand landed in a crumpled heap on the ground next to his feet. 'Having trouble standing on your own two feet?' I hear him mock jokingly. _Wait, did THE Professor Snape, the one that never smiled or did anything NICE for that matter just JOKE at me?! Oh mighty Merlin... what's going on here?_

'Come Hermione.' Snape calls, stepping over me. _Oh now what, he's calling me Hermione?! Oh something must be terribly wrong with him. Too bad Madam Pomfrey isn't here to help…_

'Coming Professor!' I yell, running to catch up with him, but I keep a safe distance away. He stepping up onto the familiar welcoming front deck and strode towards the grand double doors that lead into my house. He rang the doorbell, hearing a faint echo of the doorbell from inside. The outline of a figure shows up and opens the door for us, and we are greeted by my mother. 'Oh! Hello Professor, Hermione. Come in, I have tea set up over there.'

'Thank you Mrs. Granger.' Snape says, walking in and taking a seat on the chair next to the fireplace as if he's been here before, and has already made himself welcome. He grabs a cup of tea and sits down on one of the armchair and waits for the rest of the family to join him.

I catch onto this in an instant. 'Mother? Were you expecting him?' I ask, skeptical of what was going on, noticing how welcomed my professor was acting in my own house. I mean, it wasn't helping the already awkward situation, no need to make it worse, right?

'Yes sweetheart, he said he had some important matters to discuss with you. Just go take a seat over there. I will go get your father' She said, sounding kind of nervous, which only adds to my uneasiness.

'Alright Mother.' I hopelessly agree. I take a seat on the couch, with two empty seats on either side of me, one for my mother, and the other for my father. As I walk towards the couch, I could have sworn I heard her say that will be the last time I ever hear that. What does she mean by that? I thought to myself. I just tell myself that I was hearing things as I too took a seat on the couch. Before I take a sip of my tea, I hear my father walk in with my mother.

'Hello Professor.' My father greeted Snape, 'Pleasure as always.' _Always?_ I thought to myself. Does that mean my parents and Snape have talked before? Guess I'm about to find out. My father took the seat next to me, and my mother begins to speak.

'Hermione, dear, Professor Snape is about to tell you something, and promise not to overreact ok? None of it may seem real, but I seriously want you to take it seriously. You're father and I didn't like the way it sounded either' she tells me, sending my nervousness to an all-time high. Every single adult in the room was acting way too out of character for my taste.

'I guess so.' I answer, my voice wavering uncontrollably in my throat, me having no power over what my body does from this moment on forward.

'Good,' my father speaks up, adding to the tension building in the room. 'This news is going to change our lives forever.' I would have taken that as a joke, it's just too bad that his guise was completely serious, unwavering, and his voice remaining completely steady.

They were really starting to scare me now. 'Just get on with the news.' I snap, my patience running thin, mainly due to my growing uneasiness. My head turns to look at Snape, who hadn't said a word since we got here, nor has he moved position, and his gaze remained fixed on the fireplace.

'Hermione,' he started, not looking up from the fire, his voice remaining completely steady. 'You are my daughter.'

Silence. Echoing silence everywhere. Not a thought running through my mind, not a sound coming out of anything. Time is at a standstill, as if it were waiting for me to say something, anything, but my mouth remains closed. Closed, and invalid, it just hangs open like a fish dangling limply on a hook, awaiting its death to come. Only the faint sound of crackling fire filled the tense room. _What? What? WHAT? _Was the only word running through my mind, it unable to form any other thought.

I sat there, with my mouth wide open, and my eyes unblinking, unbelieving that he could just come out and say it like that. 'W-what did you just say?' I stammered out, still trying to get this new information to sink in. This is where osmosis would come in real use, too bad it only works with water.

'Hermione, I know this may seem like a shock to you,' I snorted at that. 'But I've done all the research, confirmed with your birth certificate and my missing daughter's birth certificate, and you in fact my youngest daughter.' Snape said calmly, as if he were talking about the weather outside.

A conscious thought finally is able to form. _They've got to be joking with me! _SoI decided it was time to determine whether or not they were joshing. 'I don't mean to sound rude Professor, but I really want some proof to prove that I'm your, daughter. I mean, I look nothing like you!' I tried to reason, as I also tried my best to keep the snide out of my voice, actually thinking for a moment that I had a valid point. But obviously the professor came prepared.

'Correct Hermione, because you are under a very powerful concealer charm. It was placed on you when you were four months old, and only someone that shares your blood can take it off.' He states, knowing that I was going to ask for some evidence. I guess being his student for so long helped him learn my personality.

_Four months?_ _I thought that must have been when they gave me up._ Ouch, that kind of hurts, being given away at four months. And to think that same guy comes waltzing into my parents or adoptive parent's house and declaring he wants me back? Funny. 'Ok, well can you take it off?' I asked as politely as I could manage.

'Certainly. Go stand in front of that mirror over there.' Snape says, pointing to a full sized mirror on the other side of the living room. The mirror calls me over, as if it's waiting for me to find out the truth.

Walking slowly, I face the mirror and wait to see what I really look like; taking in my appearance as if it's the last time I will ever see it. And for all I know, it might be the last time I see this Hermione, the Hermione with untamable wavy brown hair, chocolate browns eyes that seem to radiate knowledge, and my signature buck teeth. Who knows? Maybe the Hermione that will soon stand before you will have midnight black hair, and a nose the size of Jupiter. But my fantasizing halts, as Snape waves his wand over me, and mumbled something I couldn't pick up, and immediately saw the transformation begin.

For starters, my normal, bushy, untamed hair magically changed into silky, flowing ink black hair that flowed down my back. _So I was right about the hair… _I think amusedly to myself. My height of 5'4 was raised to 5'6, I slimmed down, (if that was even possible, I was already underweight as it was) and my legs got a little longer, but that wasn't the major change I saw. That would be my eye color. They went from a warm, chocolate color I was so familiar with became a striking deep purple color, almost a deep violent color. _At least I don't have the nose… _I try and comfort myself, but I know it's useless, for all I could do, was stand there, thinking what the bloody hell going to happen from here, now that the truth has been released.

**A/N: How's that for a first chapter? Eh, eh? Yeah I know, short. :P But I promise they get longer. So, well, not much left to say here, just, review! Yeah, that lovely little button makes my day when you people click it. (: So, review and I'll see you later! Peace out! **

**~Prongs**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Hey, guess what? I don't own anything! All rights go to their owners, everything you recognize from the HP series belongs to JK Rowling, and there is actually another author, to whom the general IDEA of the story belongs to. Check out my page, it shows everything she owns. (There's too much to fit here) **

**A/N: Hey, yep, re-writing this one too. It kinda sucks. So I'm taking the time to rewrite it and get it the way I hoped it would be in the first place. So, I guess that's kinda it. :/**

**So enjoy chapter 2. (:**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 2

My mind, too petrified to bother with moving any of my body parts, froze as if time itself stood still. I guess it's lucky that my lungs breathe involuntarily, because I would have forgotten to breath. The air rushing into my body was coming in breathless sucks of air that did nothing for my body, for it also must have shown in my body appearance on the outside as well.

'I do say Hermione; you are doing an excellent impression of fish.' Snape said, chuckling and my stunned guise. He must find this whole situation ironic, the girl with all the answers is speechless, stunned, struck without words. My mouth remained agape, unable to take in my real appearance, until I hear a faint mutter of Snape muttering the countercharm, putting the spell back on me. Watching in awe, I follow the magical transformation back up my body until it engulfs me entirely, leaving me the way I was used to being.

Finally snapping out of my dazed trance, I slowly turn back to my now adoptive parents and my real father. _Huh, that's gonna take some getting used to… _'Ok,' I start uneasily, 'would it be alright if I asked you all a couple of questions?' I asked, trying to keep the anger out of my voice. Anger, confusion, and betrayal, it's hard to determine which one I feel the most.

'Of course.' my adoptive mother says nervously as she takes my father's hand and goes to sit on the couch. Snape reclaims the armchair for his own. That leaves me standing in front of all of them. Good, because I've got a thing or two to say to them.

I stalked silently to the center stage, and turned to face them, their facial expressions telling me they could not tell what I was thinking or what I was going to say Funny, I guess my facial expression proved nonchalant. I remained silent for a couple moments as I began to formulate what questions I should ask, to gain all the knowledge I've lacked for so long. 'Ok, my first question is, why did you give me up at four months?' was the first to blurt out, because my hurt emotions were telling me that there was more to the story than I thought. How he said it, sounded like they didn't even want me, that I was some sort of mistake to him.

But judging by the look of remorse and sorrow that clouded the professor's face told me that wasn't the case. Snape sat there for a moment, in complete silence, looking rather pained as his eyes took sudden interest in the carpet beneath his feet. 'Hermione, we never wanted to give you up. You were forcefully taken from us. And you weren't given up at four months; you were taken when you were five years old.'

Confused, but slightly relieved, I asked, 'then why did you just the charm over me at four months?' I asked more calmly this time, knowing that I was not a mistake.

'Well, we wanted to disguise you, so you wouldn't be taken. But our plan failed, and you were taken anyway.' That made the most sense out of everything else that was said tonight, because that much I could have guessed on my own. I decided to switch to a happier topic, temporarily satisfied with the knowledge of my new parents. 'So what about the rest of your family, do you have any more children?' I ask, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice. How cool would it be if I had siblings? My adoptive parents didn't have any children, so, growing up, it was rather quiet.

My new topic made Snape noticeably happier as well. 'Yes, you do. You have an older sister and two twin brothers, Ara, Malik, and Arsenio.' He answered me, sounding relieved as well, that he did not have to continue talking about a subject that clearly still hurt to talk about.

Reveling in this new information, my mind wheeled overwhelmingly excited for a reason I could not explain. 'Really? So, I am the youngest out of the four of us? How old are they?' I ask, curiously.

'Ara is sixteen, a sixth year at Beauxbatons, your brothers on the other hand are the same age as you, and they both are fourteen.' He answers, waiting patiently to see if I catch on.

I do. 'Wait, they're the same age? How is that possible? They must have been born in January, no? Because if that isn't true…. Then we must be…' I trail off in disbelief.

Snape turned serious again. 'You are. You three are triplets. And believe it or not, but that is the whole reason why you were taken in the first place. Let me finish.' He pauses, noting how my face must have lit up with a million questions. I let my mouth close, letting him finish. 'The three of you have a very special connection, and special abilities that go along with that. Voldemort wanted to make sure that he wasn't going to be overruled by a bunch of teenagers.' Snape answers, further blowing my mind, each comment he says gets more and more unreal.

But surreal or not, the whole special connection and ability thing struck my interest. 'What kind of special abilities?' I asked excitedly, disregarding every logical magical thought in my mind.

'Honestly, I haven't the slightest clue. Since you left the twins' lives at a very young age, you three don't remember each other so they haven't been able to tap into their special ability, but they can tap into their special connection. Say, Hermione, have you ever heard someone talking, but it sounds like it's coming from your head?' he asks a strange question. But the slight smirk on his face tells me he already knows the answer.

I thought about that, thinking back to every time I thought I was going mental. 'As a matter of fact' I exclaim excitedly, for two reasons. One, I'm not going mental, so that's always a good thing. And two, to know that I had a supernatural connection to people I didn't even know fascinated me beyond words. It fascinates me more than everything in the Hogwarts library combined. Ok, maybe that's a stretch, but it's a close second. 'I have heard voices that sounded as if they didn't belong to me. So is that them trying to talk to me?' I ask.

Snape chuckles in response to my reaction. 'Yes. I have asked them several times to try and connect with you, but they never came back with a name or a response.' He answered, sounding somewhat disappointed.

Ok, now I've got a semi clear picture of what my brothers are like, but I've always wanted an older sister, so I move onto the questions involving her. 'Ok, so tell me about my sister.' I said, curious to learn more about my family.

Snape lets out quiet laugh of amusement, which raises my hope. I've always wanted an older sister to study with. 'Well, your sister is nothing like you.' _Great, there goes that hope. _I think sulkily to myself, but I don't let that faze me. 'She's into Quidditch and nothing else. She hates to study, and doesn't read much.' Snape finishes, and waits to see the reaction he knows he's going to get.

The muscles in my jaw don't have any work to do; gravity takes care of my dropping jaw. I feel my eyelids retreat into my skull, expanding the sight of my widened eyes, for I was flabbergasted that someone like that could be related to me. 'Oh,' was all I mumble, straining to not express my disappointment.

Before Snape gets the chance to amuse himself at my obvious disappointment, his eyes dart to the wall clock, and his own eyes widen in surprise. 'Oh Merlin, look at the time! Come, Hermione, go pack up your things. We're leaving for Snape Manor. Thank you Mr. And Mrs. Granger for the lovely tea.' Snape says, getting up to formally shake my adoptive parents' hands. I, on the other hand, was in no rush to go anywhere. _So, I just found out I'm a bloody Snape, I've got a sister who's nothing like me, and now I have to go and throw myself into a totally foreign lifestyle? I don't think so. _

'Um, sir? I hate to be rude, but do we have to leave now? I mean, this is a lot to take in. I would rather have time to absorb it all in a place I feel comfortable in.' I try and reason, desperate for one more night in my room.

He stops shaking my adoptive parents' hands. His eyes turn to my direction, but he isn't looking at me. Instead, he is in thought, thinking over my request. 'Well, I promised your brothers I would have you home tonight, but I suppose one more night won't hurt. I will be back for you tomorrow morning, eight o'clock sharp.' He says, as he makes his way towards the door. He turns one more time to bid us goodnight before he apparates out.

Turning slowly, I note that my adoptive parents turn to face me, but I honestly just want to be alone. I slowly walk up to them, kiss them both on the cheek goodnight, and immediately head upstairs. Speed walking down the hallway, I reach the door at the end, yank it open, slam it shut, and collapse on my bed. _There's no way any of that just happened… I've got to be dreaming… _I pinch myself several times before I give up; knowing that everything I just heard was the truth, the total valid truth. _What the bloody hell am I supposed to do now? _I think hopelessly to myself. I decide, after about an hour of staring at the unmoving black ceiling, which held no answers to anything I was trying to get out of it, to go to bed, knowing that everything will be explained to me tomorrow, at my new house, with my new family.

Screeching me out of a sleepless night, my alarm clock blares, reading seven fifteen in the morning. Groaning, I groggily get up, and take my suitcase out. Leaving it wide open on the floor, I take my wand out and muttered the shrinking spell. I watch dejectedly as everything in my room, from the pictures that cover my dresser to the very clothes inside my dresser shrinks to a quarter their original size. I flick my wand again, and everything comes flying into the suitcase, which magically zips itself up after everything is inside. With my suitcase by my side, I walk over to the door of my room, and turn around one last time.

My room looks totally unfamiliar to me. The only things that remain of my presence in this room, are my bed, freshly made, the curtains gathering dust in front of the dirty windows, and the dresser, once inter with clutter now spotless. The room, without me and my stuff in it, looked very commodious, and it bothered me to no end. But I wanted this transition to be as smooth and painless as possible. _Yeah, like that's possible. _I think bitterly to myself, but I push the thought aside, and with one final glance at my room, I shut the door and head downstairs.

My adoptive parents meet me at the bottom, still bundled up in their sleepwear. Mrs. Granger smiles sadly down at me, and kisses my forehead; Mr. Granger repeats the action. 'You'll be fine sweetie; it's where you've always belonged.' He tells me, but his words don't help me.

In a perfect world, I wouldn't be moving away from everything I've ever known, and I wouldn't be moving in with the school's least favorite professor. And on top of it all, I haven't got a clue as to what's going to happen to my life. Something, on top of everything else, kept me up last night. Last night, Snape mentioned something, about keeping me safe by putting me under the concealer charm. _Safe? Safe from what? _Those words swirled around and around in my head like an unstoppable merry-go-round.

The noble chimes of the doorbell ripped me from my thoughts and my adoptive father's arms as he goes and answers the door, but he already knows who's there. Severus Snape steps through door, but obviously looks like he isn't keen on staying.

'You ready Hermione?' he asks, offering his hand out.

I don't say anything. I turn away from him and turn towards my parents. I keep my face void of emotions, as I give my adoptive parents one last hug. 'Bye.' I say to them 'I promise I will write to you.'

'Ok sweetie. Bye!' my adoptive mother responds back, hugging me tightly before letting go. I turn away from them, and grab my suitcase and walk towards Snape, but I don't take his extended arm. Instead, I shove past it, and outside onto the sidewalk. Snape quickly follows, and soon, I watch hopelessly as the world around us begins to swirl, and my last hope of ever returning there extirpates.

The world around me finally comes back into focus, as my eyes once again come face to face with the concrete beneath my hands and knees, in comparison to my father, who once again lands gracefully on his feet beside me. 'Really Hermione?' he asks amusedly, emitting a small chuckle.

I tilt my head to where I knew only half of my eyes were showing as I glared up at him. Once again refusing his help, I shove myself up from my hands and dust myself off. I then make my way to my luggage that landed a good meter or two away from me. But, something stops me in my tracks. Towering over me, laid Snape Manor.

The grand castle was guarded by a midnight black iron fence, freshly painted, for the new paint smell was pungent in the air. But beyond the fence is what really caught one's eye. Resting in an ominous but strangely peaceful sort of manner, the Manor rested a good thirty meters away from the fence. Coming in between the two, a polished stone fountain spewing water from the angelic angels barely covered anything. The manor was painted black, as black as the night is, which made it stand out in the lush forest that surrounded it. At least two or three dozen windows plotted themselves across the front of the structure, and right smack dab in the middle, grand double doors remain shut. English ivory crept up the sides of the house, giving in an unkempt but overbearing look to the manor. The only thing looking remotely friendly was the well-tended to garden in the front, sprouting beautiful colors of sunset orange and yellow.

'Well go on.' I hear Snape say, snapping me out of my daze. _This is my new house…. _The thought doesn't seem real to me, along with this beautiful antique looking house. Unable to keep up my guise of aloofness and anger, I emit a squeal of glee as I drag my suitcase behind my dash for the double doors. Unfazed by my heavy panting, I impatiently wait for my father to greet me at the door. Rolling his eyes in an exaggerated manner, he unlocks the door with his wand, and gestures me in.

I am only able to take in one quick glance at my surroundings before they become obscured once more, by an overpowering force, two forces engulfing me in a tight hug. I begin to gag, for someone's hair begins to fill my mouth.

'Hermione, is that really you?' I hear one ask, on my left side.

'Y-yes, it is me, now if you don't mind; I would like my blood where it belongs, in my veins.' I joke, but that was my attempt at trying to get them to let go, or at least loosen up. I hear them laugh slightly, and they both let go simultaneously, and I'm struck once again at what I see. Standing before me, were two identical twin teenagers. And when I say identical, meaning it doesn't get more identical than what is in front of me. Exact mirror images of each other. Both extremely good looking, their hair flopping just right in front of their faces, giving them that extremely sexy quality. They were both also very tall, and very, very skinny. If I were to guess, my guess would be about 5'9 for both of them. There was just once difference between the two, their eye color. The brother on right had eyes that resembled mine, only, his are a shade or two lighter than mine, about a deep shade of purple, while the brother on the left had more lavender eyes.

'I'm Arsenio.' The brother on the right introduces himself, smiling brightly at me.

'Malik.' The other responses, mirroring his brother's smile, both revealing perfect white teeth. I suddenly feel a swift kick of jealously, knowing that they didn't have to go through the same dental procedures I did. But I mentally laugh it off.

They both turn to each other and nod, and before I know what they're doing, they walk over and examine me carefully before they both burst out laughing at the same time. 'Blimey Father!' Arsenio roars in between his uneven breaths. 'Out of four children, none of us got your nose!'

His comment breaks the tension inside me, as I begin to laugh, but I immediately size up again when I look back over at my father to see him giving smirking at him malevolently. 'That's because I haven't taken the charm off of her yet.' Upon saying that, he waves his wand over me, and I let the magical feeling descend over me once more as I transform into the real me. I open my eyes again to be met with their looks of approval versus the look they just saw.

'Ah, now I see the family resemblance.' Malik muses, sending a warm smile at me. I smile back, grateful that I don't have stuck up snobs as brothers.

'Still!' Arsenio laughs again, this time doubling over, leaning on his brother's shoulder for support. 'Still no Snape nose!' he laughs so hard to the point where he's crying.

I look to my father, so see if he sees any sort of punishment for his son's comment, but he does nothing but smirk. 'Be careful about what you say about the family nose, or you just make wake up without one.' He states calmly before strutting out of the room and out of sight.

Malik begins to laugh at his brother, and I can't help but laugh along with them. But, the laughter dies, as I hear a cold voice cut into the room. 'Aren't you going to introduce me to your little friend?' it sneers. I feel my head turn in the direction of the voice, and I also feel my brothers tense up beside me, telling me that this isn't the ideal situation for me to be in right now. A slim figure steps out of the shadows in and saunters over us slowly, giving me enough time to take in her appearance.

She too has the raven black hair, straight like mine, but has it cut in such a fashion that it reminds of Parkinson's hairstyle, cut up high near the ears in a bob. Her face is distorted in a sneer, but her eyes are different from ours. Hers are not any shade of purple, but they are rather blue, a cold blue, cold blue eyes that reminds me of the unforgiving side of an inclement ocean. She too is around our height; I'd say around 5'8 or so. She finally reaches us, but decides to tower over me, causing me to cower under her presence. 'Well?' she draws out expectantly, not taking her malevolent gaze off of me, keeping me pinned under her gaze.

I hear one of my brothers groan behind me. 'Hermione, this is our older sister Ara. Ara, this is your younger sister Hermione.' Arsenio introduces.

I hear her snicker not so under her breath. She begins to stalk circles around me, like vultures do when they see a corpse. She's scanning over me like my brothers did, only this time; it feels like I'm being examined for punishment rather than a welcome. She comes back around to my front with a disapproving glance. Her eyes find mine once more. It spells it out in her eyes; she's sending sweet daggers in my direction. She leans over my shoulder, to where her lips just begin to graze my earlobe. 'Listen here, _sister.' _She hisses out, creating emphasis on the word sister, as if she were spitting out like something vile just hit her tongue. 'You may be the new girl in this house, the daughter that Father has been looking for forever, but I will always be Father's favorite. _Always.' _She spats in my ear, sending chills up and down my spine. 'You got that?' she asks me, even though I know it's a rhetorical question. But I nod anyway, just hoping she'll leave me alone. I can pretty much hear the smirk spread back across her face, as she pulls away, and walks away, obviously satisfied.

I hear my brothers mumble irritability at her retreating figure, but then they realize that I'm too petrified to move from this spot. 'Ah don't mind her Hermione.' Malik says. 'Trust me; she's an awesome sister…'

'She's just been having the most awful mood change lately.' Arsenio finishes.

'She really is a nice sister.' Malik tries again, ignoring the snickers from Arsenio. Malik walks over to me and grabs my suitcase from my trembling hand.

'Yeah, well what's on the inside doesn't matter to me right now… I'll talk to her when that goodness is back on the outside.' I mumble, controlling my shaking back down to mild.

'Forget her Hermione.' Arsenio interrupts. 'Come on! We'll show you your room.' He says. He and Malik exchange a quick look before they take off towards the spiral staircase, my suitcase locked tightly in their hands. I roll my eyes at them before taking off after them. _Ok, so I've got a sister that hates my guts, and two brothers that act almost exactly like me… _I can already tell that this, my new life, is going to take some getting used to.

**A/N: Hey! What's up?! I've just got a quick comment before I go. **

**For those of you who have read this chapter before, isn't this one so much better?! I'm so proud of it. (: I full three pages longer that it used to be, plus all the detail that was left out before. :D So happy!**

**Well, I think that's it! (: See ya'll later! **

**Peace Out!**

**~Prongs**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Still don't own anything but my plot and my OC's. Everything you recognize from HP belongs to JK Rowling, and see my page for another list of disclaimers, for I will reiterate, there is an author that I got inspiration from. **

**A/N: Hey guys! Guess what? Yeah, I'm re-writing this one too. I've decided that my grammatical errors were too much for me to bear, so I will just fix them. That's, well, that's pretty much it for this author's note. (:**

**Enjoy Chapter Three! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 3

After finally catching up to my brothers, they stop at a bedroom at the end of the long, elegant hallway. The hallway was covered in paintings of beautiful sunsets, beaches, and forests. 'Ok Hermione, here's your room!' Malik said excitedly, breaking me out of my admiration for the paintings surrounding my room.

'Well go on, go inside!' Arsenio exclaimed, laughing at the strange look I gave to my door.

I transferred my weird looks to them before stepping, and good thing I wasn't holding anything, because it would have dropped to the floor, actually a lot like my mouth did. The whole room was in the shape of an octagon, and had polished maple wood floors. Off to one side, there was a grand fireplace surrounded by a plush brown couch, and an iron coffee table resting in front. On the opposite side of the room sat by bed, or if that's even what you want to call it. It was a king sized bed with chocolate brown silk covers, and a light brown canopy on top. Finally, at the far side of the room, there was a little sitting room, and that sitting room had a huge window that gave an amazing view on the property. I gasped again, and ran squealing over there. Much to my delight, I found that one of the walls was covered from bottom to top with books.

'On second thought, I don't think we should have shown her that Malik' Arsenio said, in mock disappointment, which quickly dissolves in laughter from my two brothers.

'I second that Arsenio.' Malik said in between laughter.

'This is amazing you guys!' I say excitedly, immediately reaching out and grabbing one of the books off the shelf to look at it. The cover read "_A Guide to the Supernatural". Hm, haven't read this one yet. _I muse to myself. I idly flip through the book and begin scanning the inside.

'Yeah,' Malik said. 'Well it better be, because Father made us work on it all weekend.' Malik said, sounding somewhat ticked, but I knew that he didn't mind doing it. They both obviously were counting down the minutes of my arrival.

'So you really like Hermione?' Arsenio said, looking hopeful. They both were eagerly looking at me, studying my face for a sign of approval.

'Yes you guys! Didn't I just say that I loved it? But there is one thing I would like to add to this room though.' I said, getting an idea. I pulled my wand out, and muttered a spell to make one side of the room look a little bigger. Then, I conjured up a big, black, baby grand piano, and put it right next to the window on that side of the wall. I also conjured up and acoustic guitar and propped it up against the wall. 'There!' I said happily. 'Now everything I need is in here.'

'We never would have thought of that!' Malik said, looking rather surprised as he walked over to the guitar and began to idly pluck at the metal strings.

'You know how to play the piano?' Arsenio asked curiously as he walked over to the piano.

'I do a little, but I like listening to piano music as I do homework. Piano music is so relaxing.' I tell them, but the look in their eyes told me they wanted more, that they wanted me to play. I sigh heavily, and plop down on the piano bench. 'You want me to play, don't you.' I state, already knowing their answer. I don't even bother to turn around. I place my fingers on the keys, and play a quick exert from a piece I learned to play over the summer, _Kiss the Rain _by Yiruma, a Korean pianist.

'Whoa Hermione! That was...' Malik started, trying to think of an appropriate adjective for the situation.

'Amazing? Magical? Unbelievable?' Arsenio offered, both of them obviously haven't had music in their house. It's a shame really, that they are just now being exposed to music like this. I guess being pureblood and everything, they aren't exposed to as much muggle stuff as everyone else.

'Yeah, yeah any of those would do.' Malik said smiling. 'Are those the only two instruments you can play?' He asked.

'Yeah, if you even want to count the guitar. I barely know how to play it. I mean, the only times I ever use instruments are so I can charm them to play music for me.' I laugh, admitting I'm not all that great of a musician.

Before either one of them gets the chance to say anything else, our father calls from the floor below. 'Children! Come downstairs, I must have a word with you!' my father yells from downstairs.

'Alright, we better go, wanna race you two?' Malik asked the gleam in his lavender eyes told us both that he was looking for a friendly competition.

'Oh, challenge accepted!' Arsenio accepted, as the both of them pivoted on heel and bolted out the door. Once in my life, I'm glad I took ballet as a child. With my late start giving me a disadvantage, I sprint out of my bedroom and quickly catch up to the racing twins. I leap into the air, grab hold of Malik's shoulders, and hurl myself over them; landing a good meter or two in front of them, and taking off down the staircase.

'Hey! You play unfair!' Malik yelled from behind me. I just laugh until someone decides to stick their hidden foot in front of me, causing me to trip and fly about another two meters forward, my body flying a good inch or two above the staircase before I land flat on my face at the bottom.

'I see you fell and discovered gravity, again.' Ara sneered, stopping at my collapsed body. 'Oh, and no running in the hallways.' She added, smirking. She takes a dramatic step over me and strides into the living room.

Malik and Arsenio finally arrive next to me, as they slide down the banister one after the other, Malik in the lead. 'Hey, you OK Hermione?' Malik asked anxiously, kneeling beside me, helping me up off the floor as he landed beside me.

'Yeah, come on.' I say after I get up. The three of us walked into the living room, where we are met by Father, who was sitting on a stiff looking black chair on the opposite side of the living room. Ara sat on the chair right next to him, smirking at the three of us as her cold piercing gaze followed us as we took our seats. I took a seat on the couch in front, and Malik and Arsenio took the shoulder rests next to me.

'Alright,' my father started with a smile as he eyed all of us. 'Now that everyone is here, we can start. First off, Hermione, since I finally found you, we are hosting a party tonight at eight. I assume you know Draco, Blaise, Pansy, Theo, Astoria, Vincent and Gregory right?'

My heart drops to my stomach, and my eyes expand to the size of a bat's. I let a loud groan escape my lips, as I drop my head in an exaggerated manner. 'Yes, you should know, you witness them picking on me every year for the past three years.' I snap, hoping I get my point across.

He nodded. 'Yes, well, all of their families are invited, and you are expected to mingle with them.' He tells me, causing my heart to drop further into my stomach, and my spirit even further than that.

I groaned again. 'You're kidding me right? You want _me, _to talk to _them? _The same people that made my life living hell for three years? The _same _people that wanted me dead during the basilisk terror? You want me to get along with them?' I ask, getting more and more hysterical about what I'm being forced to do. I try everything in my power to get him to change his mind, batting my eyes to begging, but nothing works.

But my father just smiles at me. 'I'm sorry Hermione, but this is out of my power. These people are close family friends, and whether you like it or not you are going to have to get along with them.' He reasons, knowing that he's won. I sigh loudly, letting my father continue. 'Alright, now for the serious stuff. Ara, Malik, Arsenio, you know not to tell anyone about your sister correct?' he asks.

'Yes Father.' they all said simultaneously, as if they have been over this topic before.

'Good.' he said, now turning to me. 'Hermione, you need to listen to me. You are not to tell anyone that you are my daughter. Not Potter, not Weasley, no one.' He says seriously, his pitch black eyes eying me.

My heart, that dropped down to my stomach earlier has officially stopped beating. All thoughts seized, and I don't think that I continued to breathe. No one moved, as they all waited for my response. My eyes slowly turned to see that Ara was smirking at me, her smirk growing larger as my face turned three shades whiter. How could I keep such a huge secret from my friends like that? 'W-Why not?' I stutter, trying to keep my infinite thoughts, questions, and worst case scenarios locked inside my mind.

My father sighed, for he knew this was the reaction he was most likely to get out of me. They don't call me Gryffindor for nothing you know. 'Listen Hermione, I know you trust them, but you don't know what could happen. You don't know what Voldemort is capable of. The information could be forced out of them, and it could be used against you, your friends, or your family. And besides, the only people that are going to know are Draco, Blaise, Theo, Pansy, Astoria, Vincent, and Gregory.' He informs me, causing my heart to implode on itself.

His words, how he tried to comfort me, sent me through the roof. All I could see was red, as I angrily stood up and glared at my father. 'Oh, so my worst enemies can know, but my best friends can?' I spat, my temper increasing with every word I utter.

I could tell that my father is trying his best to reason with me. 'I'm sorry Hermione, but this is the way things are. This is the way you have to live from now on; it's just something you just have to learn to accept.' Father said.

My anger deleted, I slump back down on the couch, my head laying on top of my hands, hanging in defeat. After that, I didn't bother to bring my head back up, all I did was nod and listen to what my Father was saying to the others. But after a while, he finally said 'Ok, they'll be here at eight. I expect you all to be here, in the living room.' He says, getting up from his stiff looking armchair to depart the room. The minute my father's back is turned, without a final look at any one of my siblings; I take off down the hallway, finally letting the tears that were building up in my eyes out. Blinded by my obscured vision, I stumble up the spiral staircase and take off down the hallway, that I'm actually kind of surprised that I found. I yank open the door and slam it shut. I slump down to where I can I wrap my arms around my legs. My head falls to my arms, as the wave of tears finally washes over me. _How can this be happening to me?! Not being able to tell my best friends who I really am? _My train of despair comes to an abrupt stop when earsplitting screech comes from the window across my bedroom. I tilt my head up, and I am met with three owls looking rather impatient, sitting on my windowsill. I push myself up off the floor and sulk over to the window to open it. The owls fly in, and perch themselves on my bed, each one holding out a letter tied around its leg. I smile, recognizing each one of them. I kneel down in front of the gently snowy white owl first. I untie the letter from her leg, and offer her a treat as I read the letter.

Dear Hermione,

Hey Hermione! I haven't heard from you since you left the Order yesterday. Are you ok?

Ah who am I kidding? I know you can take care of yourself. But anyway, did you hear? Ron's dad managed to get tickets to the Quidditch world cup for all of us! It's in London this year, can you believe that? I hope you can come!

-Harry

I managed to clog my tears long enough to read his letter, but I still had two letters left to go. At least there was some good news that came out of his letter, the Quidditch world cup! I have never been one for the sport, but it's still a chance to hang out with my best friends. I move on to the smallest owl in the group, but it took me a while to pin down the hyperactive little owl. I hand him a treat before he flies away.

Hey Mione!

Where have you been? I've been waiting for my chess rematch all weekend! But anyway, I just wanted to make sure you were ok. I mean you haven't written to us in four days or so. Just kidding, it's only been a day, but I still really miss you. Oh! That reminds me; can you come to the Quidditch world cup with my family? I hope you can, and see you soon! (I hope, and if I don't I'll see you on the Hogwarts express)

Love from, Ron

Ron's letter broke the dam that I clogged up earlier. The tears falling from my face began to smear the words written on the page. I set his letter of to the side, my ticket to the Quidditch world resting on top. I lastly move on to the clumsy old owl, who has fallen off the bed multiple times since I had let him in. I give him a treat, and then open the window back up, letting the owls fly away.

Dear Mione,

Where have you been? You know you are like, my only girl-friend here! And besides, the only thing Ron has been talking about is wizard's chess. I've been _really _bored playing chess with Harry and Ron all day. I hope that means you get to come to the cup, so we can catch up on one day's worth of gossip. I can't wait to find out why you left in the first place.

-Ginny.

The letter falls to the floor, as the tsunami of tears begin to flow from both eyes once more. I slump down next to my bed, and finally cry out in despair. But between my cries, I hear rushing footsteps approaching wildly towards my room. _Great, it must be Ara coming to rub this further into my face. _I think bitterly to myself. But, the rapid approaching footsteps don't sound like her normal, arrogant sounding ones. Plus, it sounds like there's more than one.

The door is pushed open, and the footsteps belong to my brothers, who stood on the other side of the doorway. 'Hey, you okay Hermione? We felt a huge wave of depression come from you.' Malik said, rushing over and taking a knee next to me, gently helping me off my knees to where I was sitting down with his arm around me.

'Yeah, it nearly knocked the wind out of us.' Arsenio said, obviously trying his best to cheer me up by making me laugh, but I just look up at him with dull eyes, and that wipes his grin right off his face. It is replaced by a solemn look.

'Yeah, I'm fine.' I sniffed, trying to reassure them. But if I could hear how empty and broken my voice sounded, it's as sure as hell that it didn't fool them. Their unchanged expressions haven't changed.

'Yeah, fine meaning broken, distant, lonely, alone, clueless, crushed and confused.' Arsenio said, reading all of my emotions spot on as he sat next to me, taking my hand and rubbing it gently. My shocked expression told him I was absolutely confused as to how he could read my emotions so clearly. 'You know how Father said that we're closer than normal siblings? We have a very strong emotional connection to each other. You can't hide anything from us. Now tell, what's up?' he asks. But, I already know they know what's wrong with me; I suppose they just want to hear me say it. They both seemed genuinely concerned, so I decide to tell them.

My emotions just come pouring out of me, like my mouth has a mouth of its own. 'My whole entire life was just mirrored one-hundred eighty degrees; it's the entire opposite of how it was. I am no longer that bushy haired Gryffindor know it all muggleborn, innocent and with nothing to hide. Now, I'm a Snape! I'm a pureblood, and now I am responsible for keeping a secret from my best friends! Now, I'm no better than those sly Slytherins.' I rant, glaring down at the floor as I play with my smooth black hair.

'Hey hey, they aren't as bad as you make them out to be.' Malik says, defending his friends. But, he shakes his head, realizing he's getting off topic. 'That's beside the point. You're still the same Hermione, just with a different name, that's all. Nothing inside you has changed; you were just living under a different guise. We were always with you, we just didn't know you. You're still intelligent and beautiful; now, you are who you really are, a Snape.'

His words make me smile, breaking my pity party, but that still doesn't shake the fact that I have to get along with the people who hate me, but at least the feeling is mutual. 'But, I still don't want to talk to Malfoy, or Zabini, or any of them.' I say childishly.

My brothers begin to laugh, not expecting me to accept my new fate so quickly. 'Oh please, contrary to what you might think, they are actually decent people if I do say so myself.' Arsenio laughs, letting go of my hand. 'All you have to do is get to know them, ask them so questions.' He suggests.

'Like what kind of questions?' I ask, sitting up from Malik's grasp to face both of them. There's really nothing I wanted to ask them, so this should be good.

Arsenio ponders this question for a moment before his face lights up with an idea, one that is sure to win me over. _Huh? How did I know that? I guess neither of them were joking when they said we've got an emotional connection. _'Well, did you know that they and all of their parents are spies for Dumbledore and that they are really part of the Order?' he asks me, smirking at my shocked expression.

I widen my eyes in surprise and jerk my head up. 'Really?' I asked excitedly, looking curiously at Arsenio to see if he was joking or not. No sign of tomfoolery was being shown anywhere.

'Yeah, it's true. That's why Draco, Blaise, Theo, Pansy, Astoria, Crabbe and Goyle act like they do in school, so no one would get the idea that something is out of place, because their parents have reputations for being heartless bastards. So, in order to keep the noise down, they do so as well.' Malik adds in smartly.

_Wow, never in a million years would I have guessed that's the reason why they act so vile in school, shoving innocent hufflepuffs around, or acting like they don't care about school, it's all for image, to protect themselves, their parents, and the Order. Wow, I guess I did take them the wrong way, I guess I'll give them a chance._

'Good choice.' Arsenio said suddenly, not realizing I have no idea how he just did that.

Eyebrows disappearing behind my hairline, I state 'But I didn't say anything.' My confusion definitely showed through my voice then.

'Don't you remember when Father told you that we have a special connection? Well part of that is that we can communicate telepathically. Try saying something to us.' Arsenio informed me. 'Just think of something you want to say, and keep your mind open.' He instructs me.

I nodded, closed my eyes slowly, and began to calm my breathing. I figured since you need to concentrate in order for it to work, you have to be calm. I concentrate on what I want to say to them. I go with something generic. **'Can you guys hear me?' **I asked uncertainly, hoping they can mentally hear me.

** 'Hey great! You caught on fast Hermione! **Malik thought excitedly, his excitement showing on his face as he glanced over at me, his lavender eyes gleaming.

'Ok,' I sigh in relief, having the satisfaction of knowing that I can communicate with my brothers at all times. It's nice to know that I have that comfort available twenty four seven. 'Thanks guys, for coming in here and comforting me. It really means a lot to me, to know that I didn't waltz into a family with nonchalant brothers. At least someone in this family cares for me, given the situation I was thrown into.' I said, smiling at the both of them, and went to give them both a huge.

'Hey, anything for you Mia, we just wanted to let you know that we really do care about you.' Malik said, hugging me back.

'We're all back together again, and you're back where you belong.' Arsenio said smiling.

I left Malik's embrace, and thought about what Malik just said. 'Did you just call me Mia?' I asked him, giving him a confused but amused look, given that Malik looked absolutely horrified.

'N-no, I didn't' he stuttered, trying desperately to hide his blush with anything he could find, including his hands and my hair.

I gently took my hair out of his grasp and silently begged for him to tell me.

'Oh alright. When we were kids, we couldn't say your real name, cause you know, it's a hard name, so we got used to calling you Mia, or at least inside my head.' he said, looking away from my gaze.

'Aww, that's really sweet. And you know, I don't mind if either of you two call me that. I'm pretty used to nicknames anyway.' I say with a comforting smile, as I take my hand and make Malik turn his head around, and do the same to Arsenio, who also looked away in embarrassment.

'Really?' Malik asks hopefully, his eyes also gleaming in hope. Arsenio's darker eyes share the same emotion as they both look towards me for an answer.

I laugh at their embarrassment, because I don't know why they were embarrassed in the first place but I reassure them anyway. 'Yeah, like I said, I think it's really sweet.' I say back with a smile.

Malik rolls his eyes, but sighs in relief nonetheless. 'Oh great, now she thinks we're all sweet and romantic and all that other girly rubbish.' Malik laughs, lighting the mood.

'No, she just thinks _you're_ a romantic. I'm not the one that's embarrassed about calling her Mia.' Arsenio retorts with a hint of amusement and sarcasm not so hidden in his voice.

Malik raises his eyebrow, letting Arsenio know that the mental challenge was accepted. 'Yeah? Coming from the guy who made her birthday cards when she wasn't even here!' Malik shot back at his brother, making a good comeback, even if the whole argument was over something pointless and stupid. But I do nothing; I just sit back and watch the two of them battle it out.

'Hey! You can't pin that on me! You did too!' Arsenio shot back.

'Wait,' I said, stopping their battle, catching onto something I wanted to know about. 'You guys made me birthday cards? Why? I didn't even think you remembered me. I know I don't.' I ask them.

They both stopped arguing and looked at me. 'Well, yeah, we both made you one every year.' Malik starts.

'Ha! So you admit I wasn't the only one doing that!' Arsenio cuts in, pumping his fist in the air, marking his insignificant victory over his brother. Malik shoots him a "shut up" glance and continues.

'We knew you were out there somewhere, so we thought that we might be able to mail them to you. But, Father said that it wasn't safe. To this day, we still aren't exactly sure why it wasn't safe, but we never did mail your cards. But there were many occasions when we tried to mail your letters without Father knowing, but Ara always caught us. I guess she knew why we were trying to, to mail our letters to you. You have always been a sensitive subject around Ara.' Malik told me.

I brush off that comment about Ara, and focus on what Malik said before that. 'Aww, you guys are the best.' I tell them, laughing. 'Now, what should I wear to this party?' I ask on an entirely different note.

Arsenio gives me a funny look, laughing on how I just changed subjects like that. 'Just some skinny jeans and a t-shirt would be fine.' Arsenio answered. 'This isn't a formal party.'

'Speaking of which, we better go get ready. See you in a bit Mia!' Malik said suddenly, as they both of them left my room to go get ready. I walk to my closet next to my bed, and spread it open. My closet is huge. There is one section just for shoes, one just for casual attire, one for semi-formal attire, one for formal attire, one for dresses, one for makeup, and one for jewelry. There was also a full length mirror on the opposite side. I got dressed in a pair of blue skinny jeans, a black V neck shirt with a white tank top under. I picked out a nice pair of converse, did my make up, and headed out the door, mentally preparing myself to face my longtime enemies.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything but my plots and OC's. (:**

**A/N: Hey guys. :/ Rough week too? I am so tired; I sometimes swear I'm just watching life instead of living it. :P Haha, but enough of that emo stuff, let's get to the GOOD stuff. ;) **

**Yeah, that's it for this author's note. **

**Enjoy Chapter Four!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 4

Running down the spiral staircase, I meet my father at the bottom, as I pull my long black hair into a ponytail. 'Hey Father, is anyone here yet? I kind of just wanna get this over with.' I tell him, letting him know how much I resent doing this to my longtime adversaries.

But, it seemed as if my question and my drop note completely flew over his head, in one ear and straight out the other. Instead, he just gave me a strange look, a look of something I couldn't put my finger on, and it made me slightly uncomfortable under the formal potion master's gaze. I squirmed under his gaze, as I asked, 'Um, sir?' I start, referring back to his formal title. 'What was that look for?'

A smile cracked over the normal cold stone face of Severus Snape, as he smiled a real, genuine smile, as he continued to hold his gaze towards me, unwavering by the fact that it added to my growing discomfort. 'That was the first time, since you were taken, that I've heard you call me father.' he whispers.

A sigh of relief escapes my lips, as I smile back at my father, glad that was the reason he was smiling, and not the guise of some evil scheme involving our future guests. 'Well yeah. You are my true biological father, and you deserve that title. But also, I figured that if I am to get used to this new lifestyle and my new family, I should start by calling you Father.' I answer truthfully. I walk over to his, although hesitate, I slowly wrap my arms around him and hug him. Catching him by surprise, he is frozen in shock by my action, but quickly snaps out of his daze and hugs me back. Five chimes, dies ire, reverberated throughout the hallway. My father leaves the embrace, and walks towards the double doors and opens them, showing yet another sign of death of my life changing.

'Hello Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, and Mr. and Mrs. Zabini. Please come in.' my father greeted them, stepping aside to allow them to step inside.

They all gratefully step inside, Zabini and Malfoy behind their parents, deep in conversation about something I could not pick up on. They shed their cloaks to the cloak racks, and the parents of the two families eagerly turn towards my father. Feeling a sudden sense of unease, discomfort, and that nagging sense of an awkward situation, I take my hair down from my ponytail, and cower behind the curtain of hair that hung in front of my eyes. I take one step backwards, so I was hiding behind my father. 'Hello Severus.' Mrs. Malfoy greets, giving my father a hug. Mrs. Zabini repeats the action, and Mr. Malfoy and Zabini shake his hand in formal greeting. 'Now, where is your beautiful young daughter?' Mrs. Malfoy asked eagerly, searching the room, for me. I step further behind my father. He took a breath, implying that he was about to say something, until Ara showed up, shoving right past me.

'Right here Mrs. Malfoy.' she says in a sugary sweet voice, sauntering into the room, showcasing herself by flinging her arms into the air, smiling superciliously.

Mrs. Malfoy laughs heartily, taking Ara's action as nothing more than a mere joke. 'Oh, such a comedian you are. No, I'm talking about Severus's long lost daughter.' Mrs. Malfoy clarifies, still searching for me, oblivious to Ara's furious glares in both her direction and mine.

Finally deciding just to get this whole night over with, I slowly step out and raise my hand from behind my father's back. 'Right here Mrs. Malfoy.' I say timidly, my eyes still hidden behind my raven black hair.

Mrs. Malfoy lets out an almost girlish squeal, as she, along with Mr. Malfoy, and Mr. and Mrs. Zabini come racing to greet me, shoving Ara out of their pathway. 'Oh dear, it's so great to finally meet you!' she gushes. _Ha, if only you knew who I was before. _I think bitterly to myself. But I am able to keep the bitterness away from my voice and facial expression… I hope.

'What's your name?' Mr. Malfoy asks curiously. I shallow loudly. _If only you knew I was that mudblood you pretty much wanted dead for the past three years… _

'Hermione.' I answer quietly, particularly keen on not looking at Draco and Blaise's faces. Luckily for me, they were still engrossed in their conversation, not caring much that they are here, or who they're actually about to meet.

'Hermione… the name sounds familiar…' Mrs. Zabini trails off. 'Blaise, Draco, over here.' She beckons to boys, oblivious to my distress at her calling their names. Their heads turn up, as the both raise a curious eyebrow and walk over to us.

'Yes Mother?' Zabini asks his mother curiously, not even acknowledging my presence, even though I was standing right next to both him and Malfoy.

'Does the name Hermione ring a bell to the two of you?' she asks, scanning their faces intently. She's probably good at reading facial expressions.

Immediately, their faces show sign of recognition, but their reactions are not what I expected at all. I expected hate, malicious snide comments about me, but that's not what I got at all. 'Yeah, I know a Hermione. Hermione Granger, a muggleborn from Gryffindor.' Malfoy answers. _What?! No mudblood? No know it all Gryffindork? Nothing? I guess my brothers weren't kidding, about them being decent people. _I muse slightly to myself.

'Yeah, I mean, we aren't allowed to talk to her, but, she has a reputation for being extremely nice, and she is the school's smartest witch, you know, she's the brightest witch of our year.' Zabini states.

Stepping out slightly, I raise my hand again, slightly higher this time, and smirk slightly at the two of them the way they always did to me. 'Yeah, brightest witch of her generation, right here.' I say slightly more confidently, making eye contact with both of their stunned faces.

'No way,' Draco muttered. 'You're Hermione Granger from school?' he asks, staring straight at me.

I felt myself collapse under no only Draco's unwavering stare, but Blaise's, and their parents' gazes all rested upon me as well, but I still spoke with confidence. 'No, I'm not Hermione _Granger_, but yes, we are on the same page, and you were talking about me.' I say with an almost arrogant smirk to it.

Just at that moment, my brothers come running down the staircase to greet their guests. They were wearing identical black skinny jeans, V-neck shirts, and identical fedora hats, Malik was wearing a gold one and Arsenio was wearing a red one.

'Hey Draco, Blaise!' Malik greeted them, sliding down the railing, and landing gracefully on his feet. 'Good Evening Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, Mr. and Mrs. Zabini.' He greets the parents formally. Arsenio echoes him.

'Hey guys!' Blaise greets the twins. Draco smiled and greeted his friends as well. 'Hey Malik, Arsenio.' He stops, pauses, and then continues with his statement, his question more like. 'Um, yeah, so why didn't you tell us that your sister was Hermione Granger? I mean, you've heard us talk about her, why haven't you said anything before?' he asks.

'Because we literally met her yesterday.' Arsenio smiles. 'We too didn't know she was our sister until Father hunted her down.' He continues.

'Yeah, I agree, but, everyone in the family is just finally at ease, knowing we have our missing piece back in its rightful place.' Malik says metaphorically, winking cockily at me, laughing.

'I beg to differ _Malik.' _Ara cuts in corrosively. '_I'll _tell you how it's really been going around here.' Blaise, Draco, Malik, and Arsenio just seemed to roll their eyes at the same time, knowing some sort of rant is sure to come out of this conversation. I on the other hand, felt my heart drop into my stomach. _Nothing good ever comes out of her mouth, when it's about me._

She lets out an over exaggerated, exasperated sigh. 'It's been just _awful_ around here. Minute after minute, hour after hour, she just whines and complains and cries all day long about her new life and how much her life has changed, from being a pathetic low-life mudblood to a sophisticated pureblood.' She stops, snickering at her own word choice. 'Sophisticated, oh I crack myself up. But seriously, life before her was so much better, full of family time and laughter, but now, its life where every day bleeds into the next, whine after whine cry after cry. They all seem the same now, thanks to _her._' She emphasizes my name harshly, smirking at the fact that all the adults were out of the room, leaving her to insult me at free will.

I know that it wasn't supposed to hurt as much as it did, that I was supposed to remain nonchalant against her insults like I have in the past, but all I could do was slightly open my mouth in shock, and wait for the silent tears to start falling again, which they did, cascading down my face as I weakly try to cover them up with my hands. _I don't understand what I've ever done… why can't she just talk to me? Is it the way I act? Am I really that obnoxious? _

'Knock it off will you Ara?' Malik finally yelled at her, pushing me behind him as an act of defense. Arsenio stepped next to his brother, creating a larger shield. 'Just stop it! Your attitude hasn't been that happy-go-lucky either! The only thing _you've _been doing is strutting around this house as if you own it, with your nose touching the ceiling! But what you _should _be doing is easing Hermione into her new life, not making it harder than it already is.' Malik spat at his older sister, glaring furiously at her. The smallest tint of gold begins to sparkle brightly in his furious eyes.

Arsenio speaks up, sounding just as angry with his sister as his brother. 'Just because maybe _you're_ jealous of Hermione doesn't mean you need to take it out on her! You're just jealous that Hermione is getting more attention from Father, Malik, I and everyone at this party and you can't stand it! I don't know what happened to the old you, but it's as sure as hell no one here likes the new one. So just bugger off!' he screams at her, the golden glint making an appearance in his eyes as well. _Strange… _

Their outbreak of defense sends my sister over the edge. Her usually cold blue eyes morph into a vicious ocean of abhor, tormenting every creature inside it. She lunges forward and shoves past her brothers, yanking me out by the arm. 'Jealous of _what?!' _she spats back, pinching into the skin on my arm with her nails. 'There isn't anything on it to be jealous about!' she sneers, turning back to me, referring to me as an it. 'She isn't pretty. I wouldn't be surprised if you were the only two guys on the face of this planet that would willingly talk to her. She's got the most annoying aura around her, a bitch attitude, where she feels like she has to know every single little negligible detail so she can fit in to our society. Mudblood or pureblood, you will _never _fit into the wizarding society, no matter your blood, good for nothing squalid excuse for a witch.' She virulently spats in my ear, her voice increasing with volume with every word she uttered. 'From what I've heard, you've got no friends, just those that want you to do their homework for them. The only people that have an ounce of respect for you are your professors, because you make them look good. You can't ride a broomstick to save your pathetic life. You have no talent that would stand out to others, you aren't appealing to look at, and you can't possibly be fun to hang around. Look at you! I'm surprised your vocal chords still work; you've got your nose shoved up a book all the time.' She sneers truculently, knowing she's hit every single point, extirpating whatever self-confidence I had left.

But it wasn't enough to leave me like that. She leans over, and hisses into my ear, 'Mudblood or not, you will never fit into society. And you will as sure as hell never fit into this family.' And with that, she releases my arm, leaving puncture wounds where her cruel nails held me in place, and walks off, as if nothing had happened.

A deafening crack of thunder followed a blinding streak of lightning, as the rain started pounding all around the house, as if it's demanding to be let in. I ran away from everyone in the room, despite Malik, and Arsenio's attempts to get me to stop, for their cries of my name dropped dead to my ears, up the spiral staircase, and sprinted to my room at the end of the hallway. Faintly following me, I could hear the blend of a million footsteps rapidly approaching my room, so I slammed the door shut, and magically locked it with my wand, and flicked it again, casting a spell that disables the use of the unlocking spell. Hitting the floor, I drop my wand and run over to my bed, and finally start crying. _How could she say those things to me? I… don't understand… and to think I thought Draco and Blaise were harsh… _ I think miserably to myself.

I hear the door knob being wiggled from the other side of the door. 'Hermione, let us in.' Arsenio said, trying to get the door opened, shaking the door hard.

'Wait, hold on.' I hear Malik say, sounding as if he had an idea. 'Alohamora.' Malik tried, but failed. I smirk a little, knowing that I was one step ahead of their plans. But after that, the frown reappeared, and I began to cry again. I really lost it, and I decided that I needed comforting, so I flicked my wand, reversing the spell I had previously put on the door, and charmed it to open for them. Malik and Arsenio were at my side the instant the door was opened, Draco and Blaise stepped in awkwardly after my brothers. Malik sat next to me, Arsenio sat on the other side, and Draco and Blaise knelt on the floor in front of me, but kept their distance, obviously not sure how they should approach me. But for the time being, I'm glad they kept their distance.

Malik propped my head on his shoulder while Arsenio took my hand, retaking the position they used to comfort me last time. 'Come on Hermione, you know she didn't really mean it.' He said, as he started to rub aimless circles on my back comfortingly again. It really helped when he did that. I sigh in semi contentment, but the tears were still running silently down my cheeks.

I didn't want Draco or Blaise to hear what I was going to say, for I'd rather be this more private. I mean come on, I'm not going to spill my heart out in front of my longtime enemies. **'Funny, she seemed to loathe me from the moment I stepped in the front door! What have I ever done to make her hurt me so much? I mean, have I really been that annoying?'** I asked them telepathically.

**'No! You haven't been annoying at all! You are just going through a tough time. And we've known her for a long time, and we've never seen her act that way before, and I don't' know why she has started acting this way, normally she's really nice, and sweet. You know, like an actual sister.'** Arsenio told me.

**'Oh, great. Thanks. That helped a lot.' **I spat corrosively at my brothers, his argument not helping at all.

**'Oh, sorry. I guess that wasn't the best thing to say.' **Arsenio apologizes. **'But seriously, you shouldn't take her words to heart. You know she's got to be bluffing about something, there is something about you that makes her really insecure, and we don't know any more than you do.' **He says, sounding completely baffled.

'Hermione?' Malik asks, breaking the telepathic communication to ask out loud. 'You always struck me as completely indomitable and secure, and confident. What's the difference here?' he asks.

'Yeah.' Draco speaks up. 'The two of us have insulted you ten times more than she has. What _is _the difference?' he asks curiously, with a hint of sympathy that I've never heard before.

I sigh, 'I guess… it's because of one, she's my sister, and whether or not I like her, I'm going to listen to her.' I start, stuttering through my words. 'And two, she's, she's right. There isn't anything special about me.' I admit, letting my head fall to my hands, as the tears begin to hall faster and faster, my throat closes up, and my breathing becomes shallower and shallower.

Malik stopped rubbing my back, as his eyes widen as if in horror. Arsenio's eyes also double in size, and even Draco and Blaise's eyes widen, as they lift their heads to meet my eyes. Absolutely astonished, their eyes continue to widen and widen to the point where it looks like they are about to pop right out of their head. 'What?' I ask innocently, knowing I probably said the wrong thing, and that a wave of argument is about to come my way.

'You're kidding, right?!' Malik explodes, flailing his arms wildly in exaggeration.

I raise my eyes to their level, and raise my eyebrow to them, giving them all a weird look. 'Well, yeah, she's right. I'm not all that pretty, I don't have a whole ton of friends, I am really studious, and...' I begin to list everything I remembered from Ara's rant.

'And what Hermione?' Draco prompts me, smirking slightly at me.

'And... and... I believed her, so end of sentence.' I stammered, unable to think of anything that would help my case. Anything I say would be contradicted by one of the four sitting in front of me. Well, actually, one of the three. Blaise hasn't said anything.

'And nothing Hermione!' Arsenio said loudly, cutting me off. 'Shall we go down the list? Ok, she said you're not pretty, not talented, you suck up to the teachers, you don't have a lot of friends, and you've got a know-it-all attitude right?' he lists, sending me back in time to her rant. I nod, trying to, waiting for his points.

'You know Hermione; you are actually one of the prettiest girls at Hogwarts.' Draco says suddenly, surprising everyone, shocking me more than anyone. My eyebrows rise far beyond my hairline.

'What did you say to me?' I ask dumbfounded, not comprehending what Draco just said to me, counting in the fact that he never said anything decent to me before in my life, let alone compliment me.

He raises his hands in mock surrender. 'Hey! I'm telling the truth! I know you wouldn't listen to your brothers, so I told you what you needed to hear! Draco defended himself.

I roll my eyes and start laughing at them. 'No I'm not! I know you think I'm kidding, but I seriously think there is nothing special about me, nothing about my appearance. I'm five foot nine; I've got plain hair and plain eyes, there are much prettier girls out there.' I said defiantly, laughing.

'Hermione, listen to me.' Malik said, trying to reason with me. 'A lot of girls wish that they were five foot nine. And not to sound weird, but you have a great figure. Also, you've got the most beautiful long raven black hair, and striking violent eyes.' He says, unable to keep a straight face.

I thought about it, and decided to just drop that and move on to the next point, feeling that I am fighting a losing battle. 'So what special talent do I have?' Malik rolled his eyes, and Arsenio slapped his forehead. He got off the bed, with three pairs of eyes following him. He stopped in front of the piano. 'Hermione, come over here please?' Arsenio asked, setting his hand delicately on the piano.

Laughing, I shrug and step off the bed and walk over to the piano. 'Yes?' I ask, with my arms crossed over my chest with a playful smirk playing at my lips.

'Sit down.' Arsenio ordered, pointing to the piano bench, while Draco and Blaise got up from the floor and walked over to the piano. I gave them a weird look and sat down. I gracefully put my fingers on the keys and began playing a short exert from a song I was working on over the summer; 'Flight of the Bumblebee.' After I was finished, I looked up and was met by four surprised and shocked faces, causing me to laugh even harder.

'What?' I ask through my laughter and amusement at their shocked expressions. Mouths agape, it looks like they just witnessed an alien landing or something.

Draco was the first to snap out of his trance. 'Hermione, that was amazing! I never knew you could play that well!' Draco exclaimed, his facial expression showing emotions I never knew he betrayed before, such as surprise, shock, and an actual non-sadistic smile.

I smiled back at them, and instantly felt better. 'Thanks… Draco.' I thank him, hesitating only slightly on muttering his first name. 'You know, you guys are the amazing ones. Thanks for making me feel better.' I said, standing up and hugging each one of them, even Draco and Blaise.

Rolling his eyes, Malik smiled down at me, pretending to mock me. 'You mean we don't have to go over any of the rest?' he joked, his laughter increasing.

I rolled my eyes in return and pulled him out the door, followed by Blaise, Arsenio, and Draco, all smiling and laughing. 'No you don't. I knew from the start that I was fighting a losing battle. I don't think I want to hear some of your arguments anyway.' Shooting Draco an amused look. He laughed in response, glad for the both of that the tension had been broken between the two of us. If only Blaise would speak.

We raced each other down the staircase and, and we were met with our father greeting us at the bottom. 'Ah, there you guys are. Pansy, Astoria, Theo, Crabbe and Goyle are all waiting for you in the living room.' Father said.

I stop at the front of the pack following me. 'Alright Father.' I say with a fake smile. I then turn the corner with the rest of the crowd in behind me. Mentally preparing myself, I take two deep breaths, trying to calm myself for the night ahead.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own this! I just own my plot and my OC's. (: J.K Rowling owns the rest of everything else you see printed on this page. **

**A/N: Sup guys?! Yeah, I've decided that I need to go back and edit all of my really terrible chapters before I continue on… so for all of you waiting for chapter thirty, it's just like you're waiting all over again. ;) But for the time being, you can re-read the chapters I posted. **

**So anyway, enjoy the new and improved Chapter Five! ((No worries, I got rid of the song. :P I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote that part…))**

Life as a Snape: Chapter

Coming to a halt at the bottom of the long spiral staircase, I stop dead, my eyes greeted by my other long time arch enemies; by Parkinson, Greengrass, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle. I feel myself begin to cower under their gazes. I advert my eyes away from theirs.

Parkinson is the first to speak up. 'Merlin Granger, is that really you?' Parkinson asks, but this is the first time I have ever heard her voice without a hint of malice laced inside. This time, it only was laced with surprise.

'Um, Snape.' I correct insecurely, keeping my gaze away from the rest of the Slytherins, still not entirely comfortable with the situation I'm currently in.

Parkinson begins to laugh. 'Oh, sorry, Hermione.' She apologizes, but hesitates a little before walking a little closer towards me.

**'Come on Hermione, she's just trying to get you to warm up to her. You know deep down inside that they aren't that bad.' **Malik begs me, noticing that I tensed up the closer and closer Parkinson got to me. I shoot him a quick glare and sigh exasperatedly.

**'Fine.' **I spat lightheartedly back at my brother. I turn back to Parkinson…

**'Pansy.' **Malik corrects me, smirking back at me, hearing what I had called her in my mind. I stick my tongue back at him in response. I suppose I should start calling them by their first names. I turn back to _Pansy _and awkwardly walk into her open arms, that she's been holding open for quite some time now. She too awkwardly wraps her arms around me.

'Welcome home Hermione.' She greets me quietly, talking softly into my ear, as if she were a tad unsure as to how she should approach me.

'Thanks, Pansy.' I respond lightly. I walk out of her embrace, and notice the other four standing awkwardly behind Pansy.

'Yeah, um, hi, Hermione.' Nott, Theo says to me, proving nothing but a light slap on the shoulder for my greeting. 'That is, that is you right Hermione?' he asks, sounding a tad unsure as well.

I managed to crack a smile and laugh lightly at Not- Theo, and responded with, 'that's me. Standing before you is still the same old girl you hated before, just with a new mask.' I responded, fishing around to see if they actually hated me. I began laughing lightly, shooting a mock accusing glare at Draco, who stood behind me, blushing. Everyone else laughed along with me.

'Hey now Mione we never hated you! None of us did!' Theo said sounding slightly offended. Every Slytherin in the room nodded in vigorous agreement. 'In fact, I don't know who I'm speaking for, but I know that _I _at least held respect for you.' He said, blushing slightly. But he began to shake his head, as if to shake some sort of thought out of his head. 'Hey, do you guys want to go outside?' Theo asked, slinging an arm around my shoulder smiling goofily, looking down at me with the same carefree expression.

I laughed again, also feeling a wave of relief that did not come from me. I looked over at my brothers and they smiled back at me, sending me a message, letting me know that they felt relieved that I opened up as easily as I did. Sending them a quick smile back, I turn back to Theo and say back at him 'Sure, just let me tell Father.' I halfheartedly pull his arm off my shoulder and walk over to my father, who was talking with all of the other parents in the dining room across the hallway. 'Hey, we're going to go outside, okay Father?' I informed him.

He turned to me with a warm smile on his face. 'Sure Mia.' Then, he turns away from the rest of the parents for a moment and walked over to me. Leaning down, he whispered 'I'm glad to see that you are getting along with them,' into my ear. Leaning back up, he left with a smirk and walked back to the parents. Rolling my eyes, I emitted a small laugh and left the room, returned to my brothers and their friends.

'Ok, let's go!' I say excitedly, grabbing a hold of the nearest brother's hand, [Malik's] and began to tug on it. Malik began to laugh at me, sensing that I was ready to explore the house and the property some more. My brothers led the way, since I really had no clue to as where "outside" really was. We came across a huge set of double doors located at the very back of the house. Setting his hands on the doors, Malik pushes them open, revealing some of the most beautiful scenery. Rolling hills stretched for as far as the eye can see, the grass blowing gently in the crisp autumn breeze. Encircling the meadow like field, a lush forest of glimmering gold, deep red maroon, sunset orange released their leaves, creating a tornado of color across the land. Rushing out of the forest, cutting through the plain, a deep sea blue stream dotted with rocks and pebbles flowed, stretching from one side of the property to another. And right in the middle of the yard, a graceful dogwood spread its branches, creating a canopy of dying flowers over a rock resting beneath it.

'Hermione?' I hear a voice ask me from behind. Whipping around, I see the befuddled but amused faces of the Slytherin crew behind me. Malik spoke up again. 'You like what you see?' he asks me, trying his hardest to conceal his obvious amusement by pressing his lips firmly together, the edges of his lips twitching upward.

** 'Maybe sooner or later you will realize that the harder you try and conceal your emotions, the more and more obvious they become.' **I inform him smartly, allowing a small smirk spread across my face. Both brothers begin to laugh, earning strange looks from the other seven that stood behind them.

Theo began shaking his head again, and walked forward, with Draco, Blaise, Pansy and Astoria behind him. Crabbe and Goyle left us, my guess that they went to go raid the kitchen for some food. Reputation speaks for itself. 'Come on! Let's go!' Theo urged, shaking my shoulder. Turning back to them, the rest of them backed me up, waiting for me to go ahead. An unbearable grin breaks across my face. I break free of my human cage and rush down the maple staircase, and bolt straight into the grass towards the stream, the others not too far behind. Coming to a slower pace, I walk the rest of the way to the dogwood, and take a seat on a giant root coming out of the ground, and leaned back against the tree. The others circled around me, taking a seat on the ground around me.

In order to break the obvious awkward air around us, Astoria was the first to speak up, the first time she spoke up since she stepped through the front door. 'So, um, Hermione, how are you enjoying your new life?' Astoria asks with a smile that suggested she was just trying to get someone to talk. I could sense she was trying to break the tension.

I smile warmly back at her, letting her know I appreciate her reaching out to me, especially since I was not too keen on talking to the people that terrorized for three years. 'Oh, it's definitely taking some getting used to, since I'm used to being an only child.' I start, shooting my brothers a lighthearted look. 'And, well, I…' I trail off, unsure if I should trust them with what I was about to say.

**'You should trust them; you know they could help you.' **Arsenio told me, noting the unease when I looked their way for some support. **'They've talked to Ara before, they are her friends too.' **

** 'How did you know that I was going to bring up Ara?' **I ask them. **'Oh… never mind' **I stammer, realizing that they could feel my emotions as I could feel theirs. Providing nothing but a weak smile, I turn back to the rest of the people encircling me. 'All except my sister... what do you guys think of her?' I ask, basing my question off what Arsenio had told me. _It's worth a shot, right?_

Silence rang through the air; I didn't get the answer I was hoping for. In fact, actually, I didn't get an answer at all. Their gazes fell to the ground beneath them, for they all seemed to have taken sudden interest to either a flower or a blade of grass next to them, fingering it halfheartedly. Sighing exasperatedly, I moan 'come on guys, I want know what you guys think. Surely she hasn't been this virulent before.' I beg, trying desperately to catch one pair of eyes that were so focused on the ground.

'Not to worry you Hermione, but that scene back there, that was the first time any of us have ever seen Ara like that, that inclement before.' Blaise spoke up, taking his eyes off the ground, looking me straight in the eye.

The others nod in assent. 'I agree with Blaise Hermione.' Pansy spoke up as well. 'In fact, and not to make you feel any worse, but she was always a fairly normal teenager, but…' she trails off, knowing something that I did not. I leaned in, waiting for some answers, but nothing ever came.

'Don't take this that wrong way Hermione, but ever since any of us could really remember, she has always acted a bit more emotionally detached than she really lets on.' Astoria says, cowering under the gazes that my brothers and the others shot in her direction, as if she said something out of line.

'Astoria!' Theo hisses, sending a nervous glance in my direction, as if he were waiting for a reaction. But the only one he got was confusion.

'You guys, there is something you all are not telling me. What is it?' I ask my brothers more than anyone else. **'There is something you all aren't telling me.' **I say to them.

**'Hermione, it's nothing to worry about, let's just, move onto something else. Please? I promise we will explain this all later, at some different time.' **Malik begs me, sending me a nervous glance. Shooting them both a quick glare, I turn back around and brush the topic off as if it never bothered me to begin with.

In order to break the tense atmosphere, I try and uneasily laugh off the topic, trying to let them know that the topic didn't bug me as much as it really did. 'Forget it guys. It doesn't matter.' I say, waving my hand in their direction. Although still uneasy, they all seemed to relax a great deal. Theo gets up and came to sit next to me on the tree root, as a subtle act of comforting.

'What does it feel like to be a pureblood?' I ask suddenly, not really caring for the answer that I will receive. I just figured it would be the definite tension breaker.

Erupting in a roar of laughter, everyone around the stream begin to laugh at me, including my own brothers. 'Hermione, you know you _are_ a pureblood right? Draco said laughing uncontrollably.

Embarrassed with my question, I try my best to rephrase it. 'No, sorry. That didn't come out right. I meant to ask, what was it like being raised as a pureblood?' I stammer, asking the people that would actually know what I'm talking about. Don't ask why I didn't ask my family. I just, didn't.

Settling back down, Theo answers my question. 'Well, what was it like growing up as a muggle?' he asks, answering my question with another question.

Shocked, and slightly bothered by his question, I respond. 'Well, it... it's like…' I mutter, unable to connect two ideas together in a sentence. _How do you describe how you were raised? It's not something that you would normally have to explain to someone. _'Well, my parents both loved me, and they would do anything for me.' I finally decide on an answer.

Theo doubles over in laughter once more, sending everyone else around him into the same fit. 'Well then there's your answer!' he gets out between laughs. 'It's just like that, only instead we had magic, and everything having to do with the magical world.' He states simply, as if he were talking to a younger child. Smirking, I knew he did that just to get a reaction out of me.

Raising my eyebrow, I just roll my eyes and turn back away from Theo, ready to state my case in this lighthearted argument. 'Yeah, well there are some perks to growing up the muggle way. I bet you guys have never heard any muggle artists before.' I state triumphantly.

Nodding in assent, they agreed with me. 'Yeah, I guess you're right on this one. We listen to wizard artists.' Astoria agreed, laughing slightly.

Everyone joined in, all except for Draco, who looked slightly thunder stricken at what I just said. 'Excuse me? It just so happens that I know plenty of muggle artists!' Draco shot back playfully.

Not believing him, I paint a supercilious expression on my face, and got up, kneeling right in front of him, eye to eye, and said in a clear superior tone, 'prove it.' Two little words, causing my smirk to grow wider and wider with each syllable I uttered to his face.

'Challenge accepted.' He states back, rising to the challenge. But his face loses all signs of mock arrogance, and was replaced with confusion. 'Um, how exactly am I supposed to do that?' he asks me, catching me off guard as well.

'Oh… that didn't come to mind.' I mutter, slightly embarrassed that I did not think this through. **'Just answer this for me. Have you ever heard Draco listening to a muggle artist?' **I ask my brothers, deciding that this was a better way to get my point across.

**'Only once or twice. So, if you want to disregard that, then, no. He hasn't.' **Malik told me, sending Draco another famous smirk.

**'Oh what's his name…? Snoop Cat? Or was it that other one… the one with the strange name… Luda something…. And that DJ guy… Oh you muggles have the strangest name for everything!' **Arsenio exclaims, becoming flustered with the names of famous rappers.

**'Truth be told, I am not the biggest fan of them either.' **I say, laughing out loud, causing the others to send me strange looks. It was then I remembered they can't exactly hear what I'm talking about with my brothers. 'Yeah, sorry Draco. If I say I believe you, will this conversation be over?' I ask him.

He throws his fist in the air in mock victory. 'Yes! I win. See? And to think you thought that we wizards were uncultured.' He mocked me, as if he took the roll of being an older brother.

'What's that stupid rappers name?!' Arsenio explodes, his agitation at his lacking memory finally breaking free. He turns to Draco, waiting for his answer, praying that he knew the answer to who he was trying to think of. 'It's someone about a dog, Luda something, and DJ what's his name.' Arsenio fills him in, anxiously waiting for his answer.

'Snoop, Ludacris, Khaled.' He lists of the rappers names, crossing his arms over his chest as he watches in pure amusement as the face of enlightenment and joy spreads over Arsenio's face. His faces drops open, the grin spreading like wildfire over his face.

'Ah! Those are the names! I knew it!' He exclaims, celebrating in victory. Unfortunate for him, his brother did not share his victory.

'Snoop Cat? Really?' Malik laughs, unable to contain his laughter, his laughter doubling as everyone else, especially Draco, double back over in laughter in response to his comment towards his brother.

Arsenio glared back at his brother. 'Ah shut it.' He spats halfheartedly, crossing his arms in a huff. That shut everyone up, but the smiles and grins on everyone's faces were still present.

Sitting in comfortable silence, it was eventually broken when my father's voice cut through the silence. 'Hey, could you guys come in? We need to talk to you!' he said, his voice sounding nothing above a whisper due to the distance that we were from the actual house.

Shrugging, I looked at the others, and they all seemed as confused as I was. But nonetheless, eight of us got up off our seats and began to walk towards the house, moving as one big mass. **'I wonder what he wants to talk to us about.' **I muse to my brothers, wondering if they had the slightest clue.

**'I haven't got the slightest clue…' **Arsenio said, not having any more of a clue than I did. So, for the rest of the way to the house, the eight of us walked in silence, until we reached the wooden staircase that lead to balcony. I reached for the brass doorknob, pulled it open, and the group walked inside, me closing the door behind me. We walked over to the living room, and we all took a seat, my brothers and I taking the couch as the others either took the few available chairs or the floor.

Almost immediately, my father emerged from the hallway and walked towards us, entering the room. 'Arsenio, Malik, I have already had this talk with you. You two may leave.' He states rather abruptly. My brothers turn to each other, exchanging confused looks.

'Do we have to?' Malik asks, sounding slightly offended that he could not stay. But Father shrugs, waving his hand off, giving them permission to stay. 'Now, as you guys may have guessed, this is about Hermione.' My father started, sitting down on the chair we left for him. Without a word from any of us, we all stared at him, waiting for him to continue. 'This goes for all of you when I say this, but this means that you cannot breathe a _word_ about Hermione's true identity. Do you understand? Everyone that needs to know has already been notified, so this means that you do not have the right to tell anyone.' My father said calmly, but nonetheless absolutely serious, looking at each one of us with a stern glance.

Everyone in the room was expecting this to be said, but that does not mean that it still did not knock the wind out of everyone. 'Wait,' Theo started, his face falling.

'Does this mean we can't talk to her during school?' Draco finishes, his voice falling in a slight depression, his eyes falling in light as well.

My father nods somberly. 'That is exactly what I mean. No one can know that you guys are friends now, let alone on acquainted terms.' My father said very seriously. He takes another sweep around the room, I do the same. From Blaise to Astoria, to Pansy, Draco, and Theo, their faces fell dramatically, oddly making me feel a tad better. _Well, it's glad to know that they'll miss me. _I thought to myself. But, that thought goes both ways.

But, after a while, their glances shifted towards me. Theo walked over to me, noting how my face fell more than the others, and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, trying his best to comfort me. I remained in the same position, staring at the floor, not really feeling his touch.

'Ok father.' I whispered as Theo drew aimless circles on back as my brothers tried to make some room for Theo. I took one glance up at my brothers, and noted that they both wore the same identical smirks, as they watched in an elderly brother amusement as Theo continued to draw the circles. My eyes also ventured over to Draco, noticing his expression was the opposite of my brothers. He looked rather ticked, staring at Theo with a rather cold expression on his face. _I thought they were friends… _

**'They are.' **Arsenio answers, sounding just as confused as I did. But, there was a tone, almost a tone of knowledge laced in there, in his voice. I shake it off, not wanting to argue this with my brothers at the moment.

On the other hand, Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria gave me weird looks, looks of surprise that I didn't yell at my father, or at least argue with him. I guess they did not expect me to give into my father's wishes so easily.

'Oh, well, alright.' My father says in almost a baffled tone, for he did not expect me to give in so easily either. But I could tell he was pleased that he did not have to argue this with me. Sure, there was probably some reason why I can't tell anybody, but surely I'll hear about it later.

Looking up at my father, I say, 'hey, we can still talk and hang out during the breaks and stuff…' I trail off, smiling weakly at them, trying my best to get some sort of laugh out.

I succeed. Pansy lets a smile cross her lips as she says to me, 'That's the spirit Mione!' in a cheerful voice.

All of a sudden, the parents of the rest of the guests come into the living room. 'Theo! Come on, let's go!' Mrs. Nott calls for her son, waiting patiently by the fireplace, with Mr. Nott right behind her.

Theo lets out an annoyed groan. 'Ok. Well, by Hermione see you in school!' He winked at me, and gave me another quick hug. After that, he got up, and muttered quick goodbyes, and thank you's before he walks over to his parents, and the three of them exit the home through the fireplace.

'Come on Astoria, about time we head home too. Your sister expected us home an hour ago.' Mr. Greengrass called as well, waiting by the fireplace. Astoria gets up, and comes over to give me a hug.

'Tell your sister I say hello for me.' I whisper in her ear, as she pulls away. She smiles, letting me know she'll do so. She walks over to her parents, and the three of them left straight after the Nott's did.

'Bye Hermione, see you later!' Crabbe said, with a mouth full of food in his mouth, just before he and his family disappeared under the green flames of the fireplace. **'You know, that was really the first time he said anything to me all night.' **I say amusedly to my brothers, causing them to snort in laughter.

'Yeah Mione, I'm really glad we don't have to hate you now!' Blaise said sarcastically, coming over to put a hand on my shoulder, with a smile on his face, just before he disappeared with his family, apparating out of our house.

Pansy walks up to me and gives me a quick hug. 'I can't wait to talk to you later! Be sure to owl me later, or if you ever need someone to talk to, okay?' Pansy asks kindly, smiling at me before turning back to her parents and disappearing into the green flames as well.

Draco was the last to turn to me. 'Well Hermione, enjoy your new life. See you in school, even if we don't get to talk.' He said jokingly. But his face turns slightly serious again. 'And for the record, I am really glad we can back off the insults. Or, at least this time around you know that we really don't want to hurt your feelings when we do say stuff.' He says, with a smile playing at his lips.

I laughed, and gave him a hug before he left. He quickly hugged me back, wrapping his arms around me tightly before he left with his parents through the fireplace.

The noise in the room died down significantly. My brothers walk back up to me and smirked down at me, as the corners of their lips tug upwards. 'See, that wasn't so bad huh?' Malik asked, smiling all-knowingly.

Sticking my tongue out at the both of them, I give into what they want to hear. 'Yeah, you were right; they are pretty awesome people to be around.' I huff out, crossing my arms, not enjoying being proved wrong, especially by my own two brothers. **'You two should know that I hate being proved wrong.' **I say spitefully, glaring at them playfully.

They erupt in laughter, finding amusement in my comment. 'Well, sorry little sister.' Arsenio says, smirking heavily at me.

'But we just love being right, especially when it comes to proving you wrong.' Malik finishes, his smirk identical to his brother's. Both simultaneously, the smirks are wiped off their faces. 'Come on Hermione. We still haven't shown you the whole house, including game room. That room, oh, it's a fun room. Race you there!' Malik says, sharing one quick smirk with his brother before they both bolt off down the hallway with his brother at his tail, leaving me in the dust.

Glaring at their retreating backs, I take off after them, ready to kick their butts in this race, and whatever they challenge me to in the game room that they speak of.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my own plot and my OC's. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling and her excellence. (: ****Hey Guys! Tiny font! Did any of you notice? If you did, how about message me "LOVE KNOWS NO DISTANCE. 3" And you'll get, a surprise. ;)**

**A/N: This is just another quick author's note, but I also just want to address something. Yes, I promise I will actually do something a tad more productive with my time, (meaning that I will update something that does not involve chapters you've already read) but I really just want to fix these terrible chapters. Oh, and for those of you who are new to this story, just disregard what I just said. (: It does not pertain to you. **

**So! Enough of that, I will just let you get on with reading. Enjoy! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 6

'No...No...NO damn it!' Malik shouts in frustration, forcefully throwing his controller down, crossing his arms as he began to pout.

Although his reaction was less animate, Arsenio wasn't any less startled at my ability that his brother was. Both stared at me in awe. 'Bloody hell Hermione, where did you learn to play like that?' Arsenio asks in his pleasantly surprised voice, his admiration shining through his voice. Although he was still moping about his extirpation, Malik nods in assent with his brother.

Smirking at them heavily, I reply in a sarcastic tone. 'Jealous?' I ask rhetorically. 'It's just the benefit of growing up in the muggle lifestyle. You learn the short cuts to all the corners.' I tell them.

Malik shot his head around, snapping himself out of his pity party. 'Oh yeah, is that so? I'm sure _all_ muggleborn girls pound their older brothers in Modern Warfare Three.' He states smartly, raising his eyebrow as he waits for an answer.

Laughing at his logic, I lighten up my smirk just a little bit. 'No, that isn't true. And neither is your claim. First off, I didn't have any siblings growing up, I was an only child. Second, I grew up in a neighborhood that only housed older teenagers. So, I learned how to play pretty much everything, thanks to my muggle friends back at home. I guess I have something to thank them for whenever I get to see them again.' I say, a hint of nostalgia becomes laced in my voice as my thoughts retreat back to the carefree days I spent with my neighbors.

Their grudge against my artifice skill in the video gaming world seems to be forgotten as they both began to laugh. 'Ok ok, so you're good at video games. But that doesn't mean you can beat us in everything. How about a friendly game of air hockey to top it off? It's another muggle game we have the fortune of knowing.' Arsenio says as a playful glint of competition gleams in his eyes.

'You're on.' I say back just as competitively. 'I'll play you both, and since you challenged my skill first, I'll play you first Arsenio.' I say, pointing to my brother, as his eyes widen in mock surprise. He gets up and walks me over to the table. He flips the switch, and the cool light air begins to fly out of the tiny holes in the table. We both take our handles, and I grab the puck that dispensed in my goal. I lightly flick it over to him. 'Challenger goes first.' I state, smirking wildly at him.

Returning my smirk, he playfully sneers at me one last time before he sets the puck down, and smashes his handle harshly into the puck, sending it flying in my direction. Acting quickly, I lazily stick my handle in front of his attack, reflecting it back to his side. Back and forth, the plinking sounds of the puck hitting the metal sides of the table tick on like a clock, although not a consistent speed. The rebounds become more and more intense, as the speed of the puck increases dramatically. **'I am so toying with you right now.' **I tell him, breaking his concentration. The puck slides past his handle, sliding effortlessly sliding into the goal.

Flinging his arm up in the air, he whips around, glaring at me. 'You messed me up!' he yelled, furious with me. 'You did that on purpose!' he accuses again.

This time, my smirk shows teeth. 'Oh, on the contrary, you never said I couldn't do that.' I retort smartly. 'And don't try and pull the same stunt on me. You can't break my concentration. All those years of babysitting is finally paying off.' I sneer, reading his mind. The tension between the gamers rises.

He curls his lips at me and rips the puck out of the goal post, sets it down, and shoots it back in my direction, the game back in action. I could tell he was losing it. So focused on winning, he began to let the easy things slide. Goal after goal, the score was sitting at five to zero. Feeling slight pity for my brother, I let one of his shots slide by into the goal. 'Oh yeah! Score! Take _that _Hermione!' he says, finally exclaiming something in victory. Rolling his eyes, I yank the puck out and sling it across the table, scoring on him, noticing that his guard was down. His celebration halts immediately. 'Hey! That's cheating! I wasn't ready!' he whines.

'Hey, it's not my fault you weren't ready.' I sneer back at him playfully. I ready myself for his attack, especially considering that this was the match point of the game. He takes the puck back out, and halfheartedly hits it in my direction, knowing that he is fighting a losing battle. And after I hit it back, he just gave up completely, taking his handle off the table, letting the puck slide in without any resistance. 'Ok, you win.' He says, smiling at me, letting me know he didn't take his loss seriously.

I began laughing at him, giving his a half hug. 'Well that was fun. Malik, you want a turn?' I ask, smirking at his horrified expression.

He vigorously shakes his head. 'No, after that display I'll stay over here, to myself.' He says, declining my offer.

But before I had the chance to beg him for a game, a thought suddenly stops me in my tracks. 'Oh Merlin! I forgot to ask Father something!' I exclaimed, jumping in spot. I whip around and take off down the hallway. Zipping out of the game room, I leave my brothers in the dust.

I stop dead in my tracks, unsure as to where my father would be. Also adding to that, this manor is still more of a maze than a home for the time being. Meandering around, I eventually stumble across the kitchen, hearing voices on the inside. I push the doors open. 'I'm sorry to interrupt,' I started, walking into the kitchen where my father and sister sat.

'Not sorry enough to not do it.' Ara muttered under her breath not so quietly, her glare following me as I walk over to my father.

Obviously, Father ignores her statement as well, flicking his hand in her direction, telling her to be silent. 'Father, Ron asked this a couple days ago, but his father got tickets to the Quidditch World cup, and he was wondering if I could go with them. Could I go with them, please?' I beg, just wanting to see my friends again.

The cracking of a whip sounded as Ara snapped her head up, excitement gleaming in her normally cold eyes. 'Did you say the Quidditch World Cup?' she asks in awe, forgetting to sound mean and nonchalant. The doors burst open, revealing Malik and Arsenio, as if they were listening on the other side. 'Quidditch World Cup?' they echo.

It hasn't failed to astound me that all Snape expressions all resemble each other. 'Yeah, what of it?' I ask them, not getting the big deal, considering that I am not the biggest fan of sports, muggle or wizard.

The sound of jaws dropping echoed throughout the room. 'What of it?! It's only the most important Quidditch event of the season! And this is the first time that London is hosting it!' Ara practically yells, her voice sounding like a jubilant little five year old who was just let loose in a toy store, but was told she cannot touch anything. _Oh yes, that's right. Quidditch is her forte. _I muse to myself.

I feel an excellent opportunity pop up, knowing that for the first time since I arrived here that I finally have something over Ara. Why not exploit it? 'What, jealous Ara?' I sneer at her, finally giving her a taste of her own medicine. And boy does that medicine taste wonderful, wonderfully malevolent. _Wait… where the hell did that come from? Gryffindors don't believe in revenge… that's a Slytherin trait… _I think to myself for a moment, making sure my mind was closed off before I started thinking. _I guess hanging out with those Slytherins have an effect on people… _

But my thoughts are ripped away, as I feel the smirk grow larger without command as Ara's grow to the size of a bat's in astonishment that I had the nerve to speak up against her. Shaking her head vigorously, Ara snaps out of her trance. No, I'm not.' she spat nonchalantly, turning back to her cereal. 'It's not like I would want to be seen publicly with a mudblood anyway. And it's not like you understand a bloody thing about the sport anyway. Have fun watching the match from underground.' She sneers just as virulently, gleaming upwards to see my reaction.

Turning slowly to my father, his face shows no reaction. _Nothing! He didn't hear a thing! _The thought burns a pathway straight through my mind, leaving behind a blazing trail of disbelief where it once stood. _How could he just sit there and not hear a thing she just said to me?! _Even my brothers back a step or two away from the scene, sensing the growing tension.

Father released a breath that sounds like he's been holding for quite some time, as if he finally decided on something. _Ah, so that explains why he didn't hear an insult Ara just threw at me. _ 'Hermione,' he starts, his voice sounding heavy. 'I'm not sure if I want for you to go.' He gets out finally, avoiding my eye contact.

'_Ha_!' Ara shouts triumphantly almost immediately, pointing a victorious finger at me, the gleam in her eyes before exploded, showing exactly how celebratory she was feeling.

But I don't hear her. Stunned, I focus my gaze back on my father, desperately searching to see if his face would crack with a joking expression, but nothing ever showed up. His face remained impassive. 'B-but why?' I stutter out, startled with his answer.

Father raised his gaze to finally lock with mine. 'I don't know, it just doesn't seem too safe' he answers me, dead seriously.

Almost furiously, I decide that I'm going to state my case, as if I were in a court room. 'Father, what could possibly happen? It's a Quidditch match! It's not like something is going to come up and attack me, nor will anybody try and weasel the truth about me. No one knows I'm here, let alone actually acquainted with you people.' I state, my frustration showing as clear as day through my voice.

'You don't know that Mia!' He shouts, getting up out of his chair. 'You have no clue the dangers that lurk inside matches like this. It is the perfect place to kidnap children, or the perfect place to set up an attack to harm the people watching!' he exclaims, his voice rising in intensity.

I saw where he was coming from. I slowly walked over to my father, and stopped right next to him. 'Father, you know I'm responsible, and I can take care of myself. I promise nothing will happen to me.' I try and reassure him.

He sighs, all of his anger dissipating into thin air. Looking at me, his entire posture just falls. 'Okay Mione, you can go.' He says, finally giving in. 'Just promise that you won't get hurt. I mean I just got you back. I am not letting you go again.'

Squealing, I begin jumping up and down. I rushed over and hugged my father, unable to keep the grin off my face. 'Thank you thank you thank you! Oh you won't regret this!'

My Father looked at me; actually, he looked away from me, at the floor behind me. 'You know, the last Quidditch World Cup I went to was where I meant your mother.' my Father said distantly, almost whispering to himself, as if he didn't want me to hear it.

Leaving the embrace, I look back up at my father. 'Where _is_ our mother anyway? I haven't seen her since I've gotten here. Is she out of the county?' I ask innocently.

It's as if time itself stood still. No one moved. The only thing I heard was the sharp intake of breath just moments after I said something. I looked around, waiting and watching everyone in the room, but no one moved. My brothers' eyes grew grave, as they avoided my eye contact at all costs. I caught it in their eyes. Their eyes began flooding with tears, as they desperately avoided me, sensing I was trying to catch their attention. My eyes shifted over to my father. Disbelief shook his face. I could tell, by not only my brothers' expressions but also by my father's expression, that I said something horribly out of line. But when I looked over to my sister, I felt my heart drop into my stomach.

Glaring virulently at me, Ara's inclement glare punctured through to my very soul. Her ice cold eyes froze over, to the point where her stormy eyes looked almost soulless. Sulking up slowly, she rises out of her chair and stalks over to me. She lengthens herself up to full height, and towers over me, her heartless eyes not wavering from my terrified ones. 'Mention her in front of me again, and I promise that you won't like where you're going to end up. And you don't want me angry. I'm running out of catacombs to hide the bodies in. I. Will Hurt. You.' She malignantly punctuates every word, by inching closer and closer to my face, her eyes never leaving mine. 'In my eyes, my brothers and I were born lucky. But you, you were lucky to be born.' She whispers deadly quite into my ears, loud enough for me to hear, but quite enough so no one else could hear it, besides my brothers, who may have heard it through our connection. I feel myself shutter.

Before things got more out of hand, Father gets in between the two rivaling sisters. Emitting a great sigh, he begins to talk in a voice that sounded almost hollow, as if he were in destitute. 'I suppose you have the right to know. Sit down, everyone.' He adds, gesturing to the maple kitchen table. Immediately, I take the seat across from my father, so he would be able to see any action Ara might take on me. My brothers took the seats on either side of me, but they seemed rather, uncomfortable. _Was it something I said? _I think to myself. Ara takes the seat next to my father. In my opinion, she only took that seat so she could continue to puncture my soul with her dagger glares.

Lastly, Father takes his seat. 'Hermione, your mother is dead.' He states explicitly but hollowly.

My heart, which was weakened from everything else, just now stopped beating. However tense the room was before, the atmosphere grew ten times worse. Due to the physical connection, I could feel my brothers' tense up even more, as a wave of overwhelming depression set in over me, the emotions not belonging to me. I looked over towards Malik, and watched hopelessly as the tears began to fall down his pale face, his hair hiding his eyes. Looking towards Arsenio, his tears are falling as well. Even looking back at Ara, her turbulent gaze fell, as the tears began to form at the bottoms of her eyes. But despite his children's obvious discomfort and distress, Father continues, trying his hardest to keep his voice soft but impassive. 'Your mother's name was Kyla, Karana Horton.' He begins, his voice speaking of destitute. So hollow, empty sounding, it portrays his true emotions, something I have never heard out of my professor's voice before. 'More caring than Hera, more beautiful than Aphrodite, and more intelligent than Athena, she was everything. She would never hesitate to help someone, nor would she ever fail to make perfect grades.' He says, motioning his eyes towards me. 'You look almost exactly like her Mia, and act exactly like her as well. You are the living replica of her.' He adds, with the ghost of a smile lingering on his face. 'Anyway, soon after we met, we dated for eight months, and I immediately asked her to marry me, and we got married one month after.' He informs me, assuming that the other children know about the history of our parents. 'That was when we had you Ara, and we were so happy after that, four years later, we had you three.' He says, his smile growing on his face.

'Really?' I ask, but I am quickly silenced by the glares of my sister, and the silencing looks from my brothers. Hanging my head down, I shut up and continue to listen to my father speak.

'But there was something unusual about you three.' He says, making himself sound slightly mysterious. 'The three of you had a very special magical connection, a connection that Voldemort saw it as a threat. But, he wasn't strong enough to do anything about it back then. So, five years later, when Ara was nine and you three were five, Voldemort's followers came and invaded our home.'

_**Flashback** (Severus' POV)_

_ A flash of inclement jagged lightning burned a pathway through the storming sky, rain furiously pounding at the skylight, as if threating to shatter the window to be let inside. Unable to comprehend what is happening, I take off down the hallway, my wife shaking at my side. As if something literally did, something snapped inside her. She jerked to a halt and grabbed my shirt, stopping me as well. Turning anxiously back to her, I grab her hand. 'Kyla, what are you doing? We must get out of here!' I exclaim, trying my hardest to get her to move, but she just shook her head. _

_ 'Severus, take them and go. I must protect Hermione!' Kyla stated back calming, taking my youngest daughter out of my hands. The twins began to cry, begging for their sister back. I looked from the twins, the Hermione, who also began to cry, to my wife, who had silent tears streaming down her face. 'Go!' she exclaimed louder, shoving me around._

_ I stop her. I grab her hands with my only free one. 'No, I'm staying here with you. There's no way I'm letting that monster take you or Hermione away from me!' I scream back, unable to understand why she is doing this. 'We can make it together, but we have to leave now!' I scream, pleading with her to see it my way. _

_ But the look in her beautiful violet eyes told me she wasn't going to step down. 'Severus,' she spoke my name gently, trying to get Hermione to calm down in her arms. 'Please, I need you to take the others and leave. Hermione is what he is after! I can't risk him killing all of you. I will go in the other direction' she said, pointing towards the family library. 'We will meet each other by the Muggle bus station ok?' she asks, placing a delicate hand on my trembling shoulder. _

_ Her eyes pleaded with me. Hermione and the twins began to calm down as they obliviously watched the scene before them. Even Ara's hand, locked safely in mine, stopped trembling. Malik and Arsenio, one in either arm, turned their heads to look at their mother, their young eyes brimming with 'Ok.' I whisper, giving into her pleas. 'Please stay safe.' I say a little more forcefully than I intended._

_ A sad smile crosses her face, as she placed her hand over mind, and closed her eyes, as if this were the last time she would ever be at peace. 'I will.' She whispers. _

_ Almost as if something inside them mentally snapped, Hermione began to fight furiously with her mother's grip. She finally breaks free and comes sprinting towards me. She tackles my leg and buries her face inside. Seeing the sight of their sister, the twins break free of my grasp, much easier for them, considering that there were two of them and one of me. They fall to the floor, and hug their sister, incasing her in their arms. I look down at them; my own tears began to fountain out of my eyes. What kind of heartless, soulless person would rip apart siblings like that? Ara yanks her hand free from mind, and joins her younger siblings, hugging them each. 'Stay safe.' I hear Malik whisper to his sister. She looks up at him, and hugs him even tighter, before letting go. Malik and Arsenio then sprint to their mother, who greets them with open arms, the heads fitting perfectly over her shoulders. Ara remains motionless, her sad, tear filled blue eyes just watch. I then turn down to my youngest daughter. I pick her up, and hug her, feeling her little arms hug me back. 'Goodbye Father.' I hear her whisper quietly. As if it wasn't enough to hear my own wife say that to me, hearing my daughter say that to me completely broke my spirit. I put her down, and let her return to her mother as the twins returned to me. I held them both in my arms, and stuck my hand out for Ara to grab, but she doesn't. _

_ She just stands there, unmoving in between her two parents. Suddenly, she lost it. She runs to her mother and tightly wraps her arms around her legs. 'Mother please! Don't go! He'll get you! He'll get you!' she screams, repeating herself over and over again, her screams of agony getting louder and louder as the continues to cry. Kyla kneels down before her eldest, sets Hermione down, and hugs her tightly. _

_ 'I'll be ok Ara, I promise you. I will never leave you.' She whispers in her daughter's ear. Hermione walks over to her sister and hugs her as well, as a sign of unspoken reassurance. Ara nods, and walks away from her mother and grabs my hand. With one last look at my beautiful wife, who took my youngest daughter back in her arms, she nods to me, letting me know she'll be ok. I return a small smile before I run out of the library and into the hallway, just desperate to get outside. _

_ Survival mode, my mind, body, everything, just turned survival. Focusing on nothing but keeping my children safe and the blood running through my veins. The sound of my own heartbeat drowned out the sound of my sons crying, their screams becoming louder and more filled with angst, as if they could tell something was further was upsetting their lives. Ara spoke no words. She just ran beside me, trying her best to keep herself on her own two feet. _

_ A flash of blinding green light illuminated the house, stopping me dead in my tracks. That wasn't lighting, lightning isn't green. With the worst case scenario flashing through my mind, I take off in the direction I just came from, praying to Merlin that the case scenario in my mind isn't reality. Whipping around the corner, I shove the double doors that lead to the library open, and felt time stop. _

_ Nothing moved. No one moved. No sound was being registered in my mind. The rain slowly died down, the sound of the pounding rain diffused into back ground noise I didn't register. The only thing in my vision was the sight of Voldemort himself, standing directly over my wife's dead body, her beautiful eyes losing all sight of life. They become darker and darker every passing moment. The cries of my youngest daughter screaming in the hands of Voldemort began to become unbearable. Fighting without success, she tries to yank herself away, but Voldemort tries without effort to keep her from me. Something inside me snaps. I drop the twins and stride towards Voldemort. Smirking virulently, he aimlessly kicks my wife aside and apparates out, taking my daughter with him. _

_ 'Mia!' Malik screams, running towards the blur before it disappears, stopping dead in his tracks, with his brother right behind him. 'Mia?' He questions the air, his voice ringing in sadness, not realizing where his sister disappeared off to. _

_ My wife. My daughter. Gone. In a matter of seconds. I don't feel myself walk over to her. I don't feel myself drop to my knees. She's gone. Hermione's gone, and it's all my fault. No tears fall. There isn't anything left to cry with. There isn't anything left to cry with. My heart, soul, gone. All in the blink of an eye. Her beautiful purple eyes were staring unseeing at the ceiling, never going to see anything ever again. Ara was the first to break out of the silence. In a moment, she was her mother's side, taking her hand, shaking it desperately, trying to get a response out of her. 'Mum? Mum! Mum can you hear me? Mum!' she cries in distraught, heavy tears flowing down her faces. The twins' faces whip around to their remaining sister, and rush to her side, trying their best to comfort her. I don't think they realize what has just happened. _

_ 'Ara, please stop.' Arsenio says, trying his best to comfort his sister. But, soon enough, I don't hear them anymore. My mind has just detached all senses. My hearing just melts away into back ground noise, and my vision begins to blur. The only thing that I can feel is the cold skin of my wife's limp hand. Kyla and Ara were inseparable... They did everything together, and now, Ara lost her best friend, and so did I. We just remained in the same position for the rest of the night, unable to move another muscle. _

**End of Flashback** (Hermione's POV)

Speechless. I couldn't form any words, no sentences. I can't believe I couldn't remember any of that. I mean sure, I had nightmares about bright green lightning and storms, but I never understood why until this day. My mother was murdered by Voldemort, because of me.

'It was you.'

My head jerks up, towards my sister. Glaring at me, there was something missing. That truculent gleam wasn't there anymore. It was hollow. It was in that moment that I realized, I took away her best friend. Now knowing why she hated me so much. Our mother is gone. And it's my entire fault. 'Ara,' I whispered. 'I had no idea.' I whisper. **'It's my fault. It's all my fault that our mother is gone.' **I say miserably to my brothers. But I know they aren't going to respond to me. It's because of what I said before my father told me what happened.

But, the way she reacted to my words was the complete opposite of what I expected. I expected her to be all up in my face like she has been ever since I got here. I thought she was going to scream and yell at me, flail her arms around wildly. I thought she would lose it. But no, instead, it was the complete opposite. She broke out in tears, her head falling to her hands, visible tears leaking through the cracks in her hands.

All my animosity I felt towards her evaporated on the spot. I felt my heart drop to stomach as I sat there in silence, sitting across from my obviously distraught sister. Standing up, I walk over to her, and kneel before her, and placed my hand on her shoulder. Trying desperately, I try and get her attention by shaking her shoulder gently, but she shakes me off. Sighing, I say 'look Ara, I know you must be furious right now. But, exactly _who _are you furious at? Me? Do you think I _wanted_ Voldemort to come and take me away? Do you think I _wanted_ to witness my own mother being murdered right before my very eyes?' I asked her gently. She doesn't respond, but I know I have her attention, along with everyone else's attention. No one else talked, so I continue. 'And at least you remember her Ara. I never got the chance to meet her, not really. I don't remember her…' I whisper, unable to raise my voice any higher, I could feel my voice starting to crack underneath the swelling emotions. My own speech had my emotions running wild, as I tried to connect with my sister.

Finally, I broke through her wall. Slowly raising her head, she looked up at me, her ocean blue eyes filled with tears. But, there was something I noticed; for the first time, she wasn't glaring at me. She takes my hand off her shoulder, and gently holds it in her hand. 'No, I know it's not your fault Hermione… It's just, I'm torn between my animosity for Voldemort and my longing for my mother. And I guess I just took it out on you, because, after all, you were the one that he was after.' She whispers. 'I'm sorry.' She apologizes. That was unexpected, her apology. I could feel myself crying harder, as I gripped her hand harder as her hand started to shake. 'Every day, every minute of my life that passes by, I think about what life would have been like if she was still alive, still here with me…' she sighs, crying dejectedly.

'You and the rest of us.' Malik whispers woefully, finally breaking the other's vow of silence.

Ara broke her frown with a small laugh. 'Yeah, I know the rest of you miss her too. And Hermione,' she says, pausing in her speech to look at me. 'I'm so sorry for the way I've been acting towards you. I haven't been the best sister for you. Hell, I haven't been a sister at all, I've been, an arse.' She admits, hanging her head in shame.

I should have known that was coming, but it still knocked the wind out of me. 'Thanks Ara.' Was all I could muster, but the hug I gave her must have compensated for something. She hugs me back tightly, and then lets me go, lightening the mood of the whole room, diffusing the tense atmosphere that was present before. Sitting in a comfortable silence, no one speaks for a while, but during that silence, something unusual strikes me.

'Hey Father,' I start, getting his attention. 'If Lord Voldemort got a hold of me, then how come I ended up with Muggles and not screwed like all of his other victims?' I asked confused. 'Hey, it's a reasonable question, no one besides ever has ever survived Voldemort when he got a hold of them.' I defend myself, seeing all the weird looks I was getting from my siblings. But, it seems as if my question caught their attention. I guess they've never heard this side of the story before.

Letting out a small laugh, my brother waves his hands, dismissing the looks from the elder of his children. 'Ah, I was wondering when you were going to ask that.' He muses lightly, leaning back in his chair slightly. 'You know Draco's father, Lucius? He was one of the Death Eaters assigned to raid my house that night, but he informed me of this. He told me there was nothing I could have done to stop it, for one of two reasons. One, if Voldemort came to our house and no one was here, he would have killed Lucius. He was the only death eater on the mission with him. And two, if I acted as if I didn't know, all of his children would make it out alive…' he trails off.

'He couldn't guarantee Mother's safety?' Ara asked, with an edge in her voice.

Father shook his head, not saying a word. He continues on with his story. 'So, when Voldemort came, he gave you to him, telling Lucius to dispose of you.' He wrapped up rather quickly, taking a quick sip of his jasmine tea to calm himself back down. I can tell by his face, that the story brought back memories that were supposed to stay hidden ever since they happened.

But my curiosity got the best the best of me. I knew he didn't want to talk about the subject anymore, but I had to know my past, mainly because I can't remember my past. 'But why didn't he give me back to you? And how come I don't remember any of this? I mean, Malik and Arsenio do.' I stated, using my official question asking voice, that I normally tend to use in school.

But, despite his obvious uneasiness, he smiled again and answered my question. 'Come on Mia, I thought the brightest witch of her age didn't need things spelled out for her. But if I must explain, fine.' He says jokingly, poking fun at my reputation in the school. 'Don't under estimate Lucius' logic. He didn't want Voldemort thinking that you weren't dead, so he brought you to the Muggle's home instead. But, by the time it was considered safe for you to come home, he couldn't take you back because you had gotten too old. The early childhood years are crucial for a wizard or witch. And if you grow up away from magic, it would be too much to expose you too, and you most likely forgot all about us.' He states quietly, his voice descending at a steady decrescendo as his story wraps up.

'Thanks Hermione,' Malik in a snide tone, but it had an edge of lightheartedness in it. Laughing, the mood in the room evaporated. The twins always knew had to lighten the mood in a tense situation.

There was something else that was bugging me, but it was less serious, but that still doesn't mean I don't want to know the answer to it. 'Hey, Ara? Does this mean we're on better terms now?' I ask, with an overly eager grin on my face, hoping for the answer I was praying to hear, one three letter word.

'Yes.' She says that three letter word I wanted to hear. She reciprocates my grin and leans over to hug me. I wrap my arms around her as well, for the first time receiving any sort of affection from my sister.

Almost unexpectedly, Father stands up and leaves the room, smiling on his way out. _I guess he figures that he's fixed up the last hole in his family. _I muse.

**'Yeah, that's probably true…' **Arsenio muses back, finally opening up his mind to me.

**'Oh, so the two of you are actually going to talk to me now?' **I ask more angrily than I originally intended, but that's fine. I still wasn't at my happiest with them, since they ignored me when I apparently said the wrong thing.

**'Yeah, about that… we're really sorry…' **Malik admits, hanging his head in shame.

I don't say anything, but I'm sick of them reading my mind when they aren't supposed to be, but they knew they have been forgiven. Their shoulders slump in relief as they head the kitchen to continue making their breakfast, which really didn't last long. As soon as Malik takes a bowl out of the cabinet, he shouts, 'how about a rematch on Modern Warfare three?' 'You can come to Ara.' He added jokingly.

A smirk crosses over her face, the smirk that I had gotten used to seeing over the past couple of days. 'Oh you are so on!' she proclaims, leaping out of her chair. 'Race you to the game room!' Ara shouts from down the hallway, for she started speaking her sentence when she was halfway down the hallway.

'Hey, unfair start!' Arsenio shouts over his shoulder, abandoning his empty bowl of cereal, with his brother right behind him. The two of them, at each other's heels, take off after Ara down the hallway, leaving the cereal in their containers.

**A/N: So? How did you like what I added? Good no? Well, you can tell me all about our opinion in a review! I haven't been begging much for these, but I seriously need a review or two. (: It is quite an amazing feeling waking up to a review, (a positive review mind you) in the morning. Haha, well, see you in the next chapter. **

** ~Prongs**


	7. Chapter 7

**Oh My Wonderful readers! You did what I asked for! Best. Holiday. Gift. EVER!**

**Anyway, I promised I would have these out sooner. **

**missmollymundt- Sure, you can count as 2 reviews. ;)**

**JaneA0202****- ****Hey, if you don't like the way I'm writing it, then don't read it. **

**Anyway, you know the rule. 5 reviews= Another chapter. **

**Enjoy!**

'Hermione, come on! You're going to be late!' My father called down the hall.  
>I was getting ready to leave for the Weasley's, because we would be leaving for the Quidditch World Cup the next day. 'Do you have everything packed?' he asked, walking into my room.<br>I smiled at him. 'Yep! I have all my stuff packed!' I hesitated for a second. 'Wait, this means I won't see you guys till Christmas Break huh?' I sighed, dejected.  
>My Father smiled sadly and walked up to me to give me a hug. 'That's right Mia. Come on, I need to go over a couple of things before you leave.' He walked out the door, waiting for me to follow.<br>'Need any help with that Mione?' Malik asked from behind me. I didn't realize either of the two of them were there until they said something.  
>I spun around and glared at them. 'Don't scare me like that! And yes, I would like some help.'<br>They both laughed at me and each of them took a suitcase, and the three of us headed downstairs together.  
>At the bottom of the stairs, we met Father there, waiting for us. 'Ah, Mia. Come and take a seat real fast.' he said, motioning over to the couch. I took a seat, with Malik and Arsenio on either side of me. 'Ok, Mia, I just thought that I should tell you, but you must lie, and tell whatever you must so that your friends don't find out about your real family, Ok?' he asked, looking at me.<br>I looked at him with that duh-I-could-have-guessed-to-do-that look, and said, 'I know Father. I thought that would be self explanatory.' Malik and Arsenio laughed next to me, and Father smiled. 'Well, your right. I should have expected more from the brightest witch of her age. Speaking of, the Weasley's are expecting you. You best be going.'  
>I stood up, and gave my Father a hug, then turned to the twins. 'Well, see you during Christmas break I suppose. Try not to do anything stupid at Dumstrang ok?'<br>They laughed, and gave me a hug, so, I was kind of squished in between the two of them. 'Hey, same goes for you as well little sis.'  
>I walked towards the fireplace. 'Oh, tell Ara I said bye when she gets back from shopping ok?' My Father nodded and shooed me to the fireplace.<br>'The Burrow!' I yelled, throwing the floo powder down, and the last thing I saw was my family waving, before they disappeared into green flames.

I landed ungracefully at Ron's feet, who was laughing uncontrollably. 'H-hey H-erm-ione! H-how are y-you?' He stuttered in between breaths.  
>I looked up at him, glaring playfully. 'Fine Ronald. Now, can you be a gentleman and HELP ME OFF THE FLOOR?' I shouted, holding my hand out. He got himself under control, after a while, and helped me up. 'Thank you kind sir!' I said sarcastically. He laughed at me once again, and we walked together to the kitchen.<br>'Hermione dear! How are you? Come in! Dinner is ready and on the table!' Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.  
>'Hello Mrs. Weasley. I'm fine thank you.' I took a seat next to Ron and Harry, filling my plate with food.<br>'Oh dear, you should know by now to call me Molly.' Mrs. Weasley exclaimed again.  
>We all laughed, and the room just got that much of a lighter feeling.<br>'Hey Hermione! How are you?' Harry asked.  
>'I'm fine Harry! I didn't die, I can assure you.' I said laughing.<br>'Hey, where did you go with Snape all of those nights ago?' Harry asked, looking curious.  
>I choked on my water, spitting it everywhere. 'What do I do? I can't tell them the truth! Come on Hermione think! Think...' 'Oh, um, He wanted to discuss the classes that I requested earlier this year, he wanted me to tutor some struggling students in Potions.' I said, uncertainly. Yeah, that works!<br>'Oh Hermione! Miss Tutor in Potions! You are still going to help Harry and me right? Ron said laughing.  
>I laughed too, feeling relieved that they bought it. 'Of course I will! Where would be without me?'<br>'Um, failing?' Harry supplied, laughing. We all laughed, and the rest of dinner was just full of laughter.  
>'Oh! Look at the time! Go on! Up to bed! We've got a long day tomorrow!' Mrs. Weasley said, shooing everyone up the stairs. I went up to my room, that I shared with Ginny, and changed into my pajamas.<br>'Having fun making up stories Mia?' Malik thought, laughing.  
>I jumped, because I didn't expect them to just appear in my head.<br>'You alright Hermione?' Ginny called from the other side of the room.  
>'Yeah! I just, bit my tongue that's all!' I reassured her.<br>'Really guys? Ginny thinks I'm mental now! And yes, I am having fun making up complete lies to my best friends ever!' I exclaimed mentally.  
>'Ok ok! Keep you head on!' Arsenio thought.<br>I calmed down a bit. 'Ok, well, I'll talk to you guys in the morning! Night!'  
>'Night Mia' Malik thought.<br>'Night luv.' Arsenio thought. I could feel them drifting away. I settled down in bed, and sleep met me moments after.

'Rise and shine! Come on! We got a Quidditch Match to catch!' Harry's excited voice rang out, waking Ginny and I up.  
>'Oh! That's right! Come on Hermione!' Ginny exclaimed, jumping out of bed and running to get dressed.<br>'Yeah yeah, I'm coming.' I said sleepily. I got up, got dressed, and went downstairs for some breakfast. I saw Harry, Fred, George, and Mr. And Mrs. Weasley at the table. I sat down next to Harry, fixing myself a bow of cereal. 'Hey, where's Ron and Percy?' I asked to no one in particular.  
>'Ron's sleeping still, and so is Percy.' Harry answered.<br>'Well shouldn't someone wake them up?' I said.  
>'Ron, I tried him. But Percy can apparate.' Mrs. Weasley said.<br>I finished my bowl of cereal. 'Well, I'm done. I can go wake Ron up.' I suggested.  
>Mrs. Weasley laughed. 'Good luck Hermione. You're going to need it.'<br>I laughed too, and walked up the long creaky staircases to Ron's room. I opened the creaky door, and was met by the sight of Ron, halfway off his bed, and drool coming out of the side of his mouth. I tiptoed over to him, and pulled out my wand. I smirked, and casted the amplifier spell, and held my wand close to my neck. 'RISE AND SHINE ICKLE RON! TIMES A TICKING, AND WE HAVE A QUIDDITCH GAME TO GET TO! GET UP YOU LAZY SACK!' I yelled at the top of my lungs. I think it woke Ron up, because he jumped about 5 feet in the air, and landed in an ungraceful heap on the floor at my feet, panting.  
>I was laughing uncontrollably. It was so bad, I had to prop myself up against the wall to stop myself from falling over.<br>'Hermione? What was that for?' Ron yelled, with pink tinged cheeks.  
>'It w-as f-for r-revenge r-reas-ons! Th-at's w-hat y-you g-get f-for l-laughing yest-terday!' I gasped, trying to get my breathing under control, and to get my face back to its normal color.<br>Ron started to pout, but got himself ready nonetheless. Still laughing uncontrollably, I made my way downstairs, where everyone else was waiting for us.  
>'Well, is he up?' Harry asked.<br>'Oh, I'm up alright! I also think my eardrums are UP, and stuck in my brain!' Ron said, walking up from behind, grabbing his coat.  
>'Well, shall we get going?' Mr. Weasley asked, opening the door. We all followed him into the woods, where we met Cedric and his dad.<br>'Hey Hermione, Fred, George, Harry, Ron, Ginny. How are you?' Cedric asked, smiling.  
>'Hey Cedric.' we all chorused.<br>'We're doing fine, thanks. How about you?' I asked politely.  
>He smiled. 'Fine.' He turned back to his father. 'Shall we get going?' he asked his father.<br>'Yes yes, lets get going! We are already running a little late.' Amos said, setting the pace by walking really fast.  
>About 20 minutes later, we reached a hill, and sitting on top was the oldest, dirtiest boot I've ever seen.<br>'Umm, Mr. Diggory, are you sure we are in the right place?' I asked uncertainly.  
>Cedric chuckled behind me. 'Hermione, it's a port key.'<br>'Oh. I-i knew that.' I stuttered embarrassed. Harry and Ron laughed behind me, and walked up to stand next to me.  
>'Ok everyone, put a hand on the boot.' Mr. Diggory instructed, putting his hand on the boot. We all leaned forward and put a hand on the boot, and I felt this spinning sensation, and we began to fly upward. We kept spinning and spinning, until everyone let go. Me, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George all landed in ungraceful heaps on the ground, while Mr. Weasley, Mr. Diggory, and Cedric gracefully walked down. 'Well, at least I'm not the only one that can't land on their feet.' I thought to myself.<br>'Welcome, to the Quidditch World Cup!' Mr. Weasley said, rising his hands up. 'Come on! Let's go set up our tent!'  
>We maneuvered through hundreds upon thousands of tents, until we came across a little patch of land with a tent sitting on top, and a little wooden sign that said 'Weasley' on it.<br>'Ok, well, we're going to find our tent. See you later.' Cedric said, walking off with his dad.  
>We waved back to them, and walked inside, but Harry hesitated outside.<br>'You coming Harry?' I asked, turning to him.  
>'It's kind of small, don't you think.' Harry said uncertainly.<br>I rolled my eyes, and pulled him inside. 'One word Harry. Magic.'  
>I saw his whole face light up. I heard him mutter, 'I love magic.'<br>I set my stuff on my bed, and sat next to Ginny.  
>'Ay! Feet off the table!' Mr. Weasley shouted, shooing Fred and George's feet off the table.<br>'Feet off the table!' they mocked back.  
>We heard a lot of shouting coming from outside.<br>'Hm, must be them Ireland fans.' Fred mused, taking a huge bite out of his banana. We all laughed, until Mr. Weasley came rushing in, panting. 'Come on! We all need to get out of here!' He rushed out, pushing Ginny off the bed and out the door.  
>'Why? What's happening? Are the Irish fans getting out of hand?' Fred joked, elbowing his brother in the ribs laughing.<br>'No, the camp is being attacked! Let's GO! We need to get back to the port key.' Mr. Weasley shouted. We all panicked, but rushed out of the tent, and we were met by the sight of tents burning, and people running in every which way.  
>'Come on! If we get separated, meet us back at the port key!' Mr. Weasley shouted over the noise, and good thing he did, because a group of terrified people ran into us, and separated me, Harry and Ron from the rest of the group.<br>'Come on! We've got to get to the port key!' I yelled, pushing Harry and Ron in front of me. We started running, when I saw what was causing this problem in the first place. I saw a group of people, wearing all black, and shooting killing curses every which way. Harry, Ron and I kept running past people, trying to find our way back to the port key.  
>'Death Eater attack!' I yelled to my brothers, hoping they would hear me.<br>'What? Ok, I'm gonna go find Dad!' Arsenio said, slightly panicky.  
>'Stay safe Mia.' Malik said, sounding extremely worried.<br>I felt them pull away, and saw Harry approach the old boot, and we all put a hand on, and we left the chaotic scene.  
>Once we got back, landing in the ungraceful heap once again, Ron immediately stood up, and looked really worried.<br>'What's wrong Ron?' Harry asked, walking up to his best mate.  
>'What about Ginny and the others? We took the port key back.' Ron said, looking around for any sign of his family.<br>'You forgot that Dad could apparate huh Ron?' Ginny said, walking up to us.  
>Ron laughed, but I was still uneased. I should really let my family know I'm ok, and I would think that they would want to see me in person, but how do I get away from my friends?<br>'Hey guys, do you think I could let my family know that I'm ok?' I asked nervously.  
>They gave me a strange look. 'Why Hermione? They wouldn't know that you were just attacked.' Harry asked, looking confused.<br>I stared at them, hoping that my nervousness didn't show. 'Yeah, but I also left my copy of Hogwarts, a History there. You know that's my most favorite book ever.' I said, hoping they would buy that.  
>I was relived they did, when Harry laughed. 'Oh Hermione, ok. We know you can't survive the year without your most favorite book ever! Be back soon ok?' Harry said jokingly.<br>I laughed, and walked inside the house, and into the fireplace, and grabbed a hand full of floo powder.  
>'Wait, Mione, your parent's fireplace is connected to the Floo network?' Ginny asked, walking inside the house.<br>'Uhh, no. I 'm going to floo to Diagon Alley, and walk from there. Our house isn't that far from there. .' I said nervously.  
>'Oh! Ok. Be back soon!' Ginny said.<br>I raised my hand, and shouted clearly, 'Diagon Alley!' I was engulfed by green flames, and landed in the fireplace at Flourish and Botts.  
>'Hm, that's weird. I guess saying Diagon Alley can lead you anywhere.' I said to myself. I looked around, to make sure no one was around, and grabbed another handful of floo powder. 'Snape Manor!' I said quietly, but clearly, and was once again engulfed by green flames.<br>I stumbled out of the fireplace, and was met by four pair of worried anxious eyes. It must have been a little worse for them, considering that I was extremely dirty, and was covered head to toe in black floo powder.  
>'Mione! You're ok!' Malik exclaimed, relieved. He, and Arsenio practically ran over to me, pick me up off the floor, and squashed me.<br>'Y-yeah, I'm ok.' I gasped, trying to get some air into my lungs.  
>They backed off, but I was immediately bombarded by my sister. I laughed, and hugged her back. 'Good to see you to Ara!'<br>She backed off, 'oh! Sorry Mione, I was just so worried!' She said, on the verge of tears. She stepped back from me, and my Father walked up to me, with the look of love flooding his eyes. I walked up, and hugged him.  
>'Thank Merlin your ok Mia.' my Father said, hugging me back. 'You know,' My Father started letting go of me. 'You all know that I am not a man of emotion, but when the twins told me that you were being attacked, that made me more scared, frighten, nervous, than I have ever been in a good while. Thank you for coming back.'<br>'Are you going to stay here?' Malik asked, hopeful.  
>'Do you SEE her luggage with her?' Ara asked sarcastically, but laughing anyway.<br>'No, I'm not staying. I promised the others that I would come back to the Burrow. Actually, I told them that I was just coming back to get one of my books. So, I have to leave. I promise I will see you during Christmas break.' I said, walking back to the grand fireplace, and taking a handful of floo powder. I took one last look at them. 'Bye you guys.' I said dejectedly.  
>'Bye Mione.' The twins chorused back, just as dejectedly.<br>'See ya Mia.' Ara said, waving sadly.  
>'Bye Hermione. Be safe.' My Father said.<br>'The Burrow!' I shouted clearly, and the last thing I saw was my family waving back at me, smiling sadly, until I was once again engulfed by green flames, and disappeared out of sight.

**Prongs here! I will remind you again, 5 reviews= another chapter. Early Holiday gift to you all! (And for me!)**

**Anyway, I might not have another one out till another week or so, so bare with me. I'm sorry! It's all stress from school. But, during Holiday Break, I will write a ton to satisfy your needs! I promise, it's gonna get good soon! (Or later, idk)**

**Peace out! **


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize. All rights go to the bestest person on earth, J.K Rowling.**

**H**ey** you guys! I am SO sorry for updating so late. You can send the complaint letters to my Spanish teacher. (We had this HUGE oral presentation, and it took up most of my time.) Anyway, that's over with. Oh, and you did what I told you to do, so thank you for that. Hey, you know what, since you guys are soo awesome, I think I should bump it up to 6 Reviews. **

**6 Reviews= Another Chapter**

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Life as a Snape: Chapter 8

I landed with a hard thump on the floor of the Weasley's house, with Ron, Harry, Fred, and George's faces looking down on me. I smiled meekly. 'Heh, I'm back.'

Harry laughed. 'I can see that Mione. What took you so long?'

I froze on the floor, paralyzed. _What should I say?_ 'Uh, I talked with my parents for a while, and then saw...saw Lavender in Diagon Alley!' I said, dusting myself off.

'Oh good! Is she ok?' Ron asked, looking slightly concerned.

'Oh, yeah, yeah. She was ok. She was more than ok!' I answered, hoping they would believe that. Good thing I've never been a liar, but I've never been a good when either.

Fred and George gave me a funny look, but I was quickly replaced with a friendly smile. 'Well come on! Mom has a proper dinner cooking.' Fred said, walking with George to the kitchen. I walked with Harry and Ron behind the twins, and entered the small, but very homely dinning room.

'Oh Hermione! I'm so glad your ok! Do you have any bruises, broken bones, brain trauma?' Mrs. Weasley exclaimed, running over to me, and checking me over to make sure nothing was wrong.

I laughed, gently pushing her searching hands. 'I'm fine Mrs. Weasley.'

She laughed quietly, pulling her old, caring hands back. 'Oh course Hermione. Sit Sit! We're having smoked dragon!'

I pulled a seat next to Harry and Ron, filling my plate with dragon, and mashed potatoes, and began to eat.

'So, Hermione, how's your family? You were over there for quite some time.' Ginny asked, munching on her salad.

I choked on my dragon. 'W-what?' I stuttered out, fearing that someone in this room found out about my family. 'Oh! Um, they're fine. I just decided to talk to them. I mean, uh, my dad got a promotion at work.' I looked around the table, scanning their faces to see if they bought that.

Mr. Weasley broke into a wide smile. 'Oh! Good for him! You told me he was a dentroist right?'

Harry and I laughed to Mr. Weasley. For me, it was partly from relief, and the other from Mr. Weasley's way of saying Dentist. 'Yes, he is a Dentist. He got promoted to assistant manager.'

We talked about random things for the rest of dinner, until Mrs. Weasley told us to go upstairs and get ready for bed. So we all ran up the crooked, jagged stairs to our rooms. I shared one with Ginny of course. I went and got changed, and gasped when I looked in the mirror. I was met be my 'normal' look, but it still caught me by surprise.

'Hey! You ok in there?' Ginny called from outside the bathroom door.

'Yeah! I'm fine! I just uh, dropped by toothbrush.' I called back.

I could hear her laughing, but I ignored it and continued to get dressed.

After we all exchanged good nights, I hopped in bed, and sleep swept over me almost instantaneously.

After a night's worth of good sleep, I got up around nine, which was pretty late for me. Still in my pajamas, I quietly walked down the old steps, because everyone else was still sound asleep, and walked soundlessly to the kitchen. I made myself a bowl of cereal, and began to eat, well, that is until a big, midnight black owl with piercing purple eyes flew up and perched itself outside the dirty window. Astounded by how much it reminded me of certain people I know, I opened the rusty window, and gently untied the letter from the owl's jet black leg. It was addressed, 'To Hermione. No one but Hermione. If you are not Hermione, this letter will jinx you into the next country with the most foul, vile stuff flying out of your mouth. For Hermione's eyes only' I laughed, having a pretty good idea to as who this letter was from. I gently tore the letter opened, and I read the letter. It read...

_Dear Hermione,_

_Hey! How's your break from us going? Yes, I know, you are miserable, and you are begging me to let you back into our humble presence. Well today's your lucky day! Why you ask? Well, today, me, my faithful brother, and my older semi-annoying sister are throwing a surprise birthday party for Father. And you know, we kinda want you there, because this is going to be the 1st party Father has had in a long time with all of his children here. You don't have to get him anything, just come. Please? It would make Father really happy', joyful, overjoyed, ecstatic, you name it. And come to think of it, since he's found you, he's been noticeably calmer around the house. He didn't even ground us for charming his bagel into a bottle of shampoo this morning! Normally, he would have stormed over to us, and threaten to hang us by our toes in our family dungeon. Two things wrong with that, 1. he loves us too much. 2. We don't have a family dungeon, we have a family 'time out' room. (What's the difference really) Anyway, who knew YOU would be the one to make him happy. Anyway, the time is 6-11 pm tonight at Snape Manor. Please try and make it. _

_Love,_

_Arsenio._

_Post 'Script.- I know how we're not suppose to tell anyone about your relationship to us, so I charmed the letter to where only you can read it. To anyone else, it's just a picture of Emma Watson, whoever that is._

_Post Post Script- By the way, the owl is yours. We named her Mia. Hehe, I know._

I looked back at the owl, who was cleaning her feathers. I walked over to her, and gently stroked her head, and she hooted affectionately. Then I remembered something.

**'He**y**Captain****Brilliant,****you****know****you****could****have****just****told****me****about****the****party.'**I told them, laughing.

**'Yeah,****good****morning****to****you****too****Mia.'**Arsenio teased, sounding sleepy.

**'Oh,****did****I****wake****you?'** I asked.

**'Oh****no,****we****were****already****awake.****Arsenio****and****I****were****skydiving****earlier.'**Malik said sarcastically.

**'Oh****very****funny,****and****I****can****come.'**I said laughing, eating my cereal.

**'Really?****What****about****the****Weasels?'**Arsenio asked.

**'Hey!****It's****Weasley!****And****they****should****understand.****I'll****just****say****that****my****mom****is****throwing****a****surprise****party****for****my****dad's****promotion.'**I told them. Then something odd struck me. **'Hey,****why****did****you****charm****it****to****be****Emma****Watson****to****everyone****else?'**I asked them, curious.

Arsenio laughed. **'There****are****many****reasons****little****sister.****1.****She's****delicious****eye****candy.'**

Malik joined. **'2.****She****beautiful.'**

**'3. She's super talented'**

**'4. She SMOKIN hot!' **

**'5. She's in our favorite muggle movie, which is 'Ron Geasley and the Magic Stone'**

**'All****right!****I****got****it!****She's****really****hot,****and****talented!****Just****tell****Ara****that****I'm****coming.'**I halted them, not wanting to hear anymore about Emma, no matter how amazing she is, even though that I know all of those things are true.

**'All****right****little****sis,****we****gotta****start****preparing.****See****ya****later****luv!'**Malik said, pulling out.

**'Yeah,****see****you****later!'**Arsenio said, pulling out as well.

So I continued to eat my breakfast until the whole Weasley clan came walking into the kitchen.

'Mornin!' George said, grabbing some bread and toasting it with his wand.

'Hey Mione!' Fred greeted, grabbing an apple off the counter, and taking a big bite into it.

'Oi! I was gonna eat that!' I said jokingly, standing up, trying to pull it from him.

'Hey come on now! You know it's not nice to snatch!' Fred said, raising his arm up high so I couldn't reach it.

'Yeah! It's not nice to steal either!' I said, giving up, going back to my now gooey mushy cereal.

I didn't notice Ron and Harry were even in the room until a drop of clear liquid came out of nowhere and landed straight on my letter.

'OI! What are you doing?' I shouted, ripping my letter from the old table, furiously trying to wipe the saliva off of my letter. That is, until I remembered that to everyone else, it was Emma Watson.

'Staring at that beautiful girl! Who is she?' Ron asked, trying to get the letter back.

I laughed, handing it back to him. 'It's Emma Watson. She's my role model. She's also my favorite actress.'

Harry snatched the picture from Ron. 'Can I keep it?'

Ron tried to grab it back. 'Most certainly not!'

Harry immediately tugged harder, trying to get the picture from Ron's grasp. It seemed as though Fred got this mischievous idea, because he slyly took out his wand, and muttered a spell. Next thing I knew, the picture burst into flames, and Harry and Ron stood on the spot, looking very dejected.

I laughed at the two of them, and then I turned to Mrs. Weasley, who was making breakfast for the lazy ones. 'Hey, Mrs. Weasley?' I asked.

She looked up from the frying pan, that was magically flipping pancakes. 'Dear, I insist you call me Molly. Yes?'

I shuffled my feet, taking sudden interest in the cracked worn out wooden floor below me. 'Uhh, well, my mother is throwing a surprise party for my father's promotion. Is it ok if I attend?'

She laughed, shoving a plate in my hand and piling it high with fresh, warm, golden pancakes. 'Oh of course you can! When is it?'

'It's six to eleven. Thank you Mrs.-Molly.' I said, smiling.

'Well have fun my dear!' She said, making another batch of pancakes. I walked back over to the table, where Fred, George, and Harry were enjoying their pancakes.

'So, Miss Book Worm, are you ready for your 4th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?' Fred said, jokingly.

'Yeah, ready to beat out the 5th, 6th, and 7th years in your studies?' George joked, joining his twin.

Harry and I laughed, but I felt a sudden stab of longing. They reminded me so much of Malik and Arsenio. I quickly shook it off and took another bite of my pancake.

After breakfast, we hung out, jumping from wizard chess tournaments, and Quidditch. I dominated in chess of course, but as always, Ron always beat me, and I stood on the sidelines during Quidditch. We all know perfectly well that I suck horribly at that wizard sport. They came flying down, after Harry caught the snitch.

'Do you play any sport Mione?' Harry asked. Of course he would be the only one here that would know about muggle sports.

I stood there, with my mouth open in fake horror. 'What? How could I, Gryffindor genius, do _anything_ athletic?' I said, my voice laced with fake surprise.

Ron laughed. 'Well, do you?'

I scoffed, and walked up to him till we were face to face. 'Why, in fact, yes I do. I'm a brilliant soccer player.'

Ron laughed, backing away. 'Soccer? Since when did you play soccer?'

'Since I was little! But I had to quit because of school!'

George laughed, 'Yeah, THAT'S the reason.'

'Oi, I'll have you know that I am actually pretty good!' I said proudly, walking up to him.

'Oh yea? Prove it.' Fred smirked, know that I could never refuse when he puts it that way.

I was going to step up to the challenge, because when someone says the words Prove it, I must. It's a part of my brainy know it all side. But I couldn't because Mrs. Weasley calls me in. 'Hermione! It's 5:30! Almost time for your party!'

'Coming!' I called back. 'See you guys later!' I called back to my friends, running back to the house.

'Have fun dear!' Mrs. Weasley said, giving me my shoes.

'I will! I will be back, maybe around 11:25.' I told her, putting my shoes on.

'Ok dear! Now go or you will be late!' She said, shooing me to the fireplace.

I grabbed a handful of floo powder, and shouting very clearly, 'Diagon Alley!' and the Weasley living room disappeared.

I landed in the Florish and Botts fireplace. I quickly scanned the area to make sure no one was coming. Once I was sure that the dusty old building was empty, I grabbed another handful of floo powder and whispered clearly, 'Snape Manor.' and the old room was engulfed by green flames.

'Mione! We're so glad you could make it!'


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. Everything that you don't recognize belongs to either J.K. Rowling, or Warner Bros. **

**A/N: We're even you know. I know you people are reading my story, but SO little of you refuse to review, it's actually kind of depressing. That's why nothing has been updated. So, I've decided to give up on that whole this, BUT, if NO reviews are coming in, then I won't write at all. I'll just start a different story. How's that? Fair? Good. **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 9

'Mione! We're so glad you could make it!'

I smiled, and ran up to my twin brothers, Arsenio and Malik, and engulfed them in a huge hug.

'Hey, I know you missed us and all, but could you loosen your grip? Please? I think you're permanently bruising my skin.' Arsenio laughing as quietly as he could, due to the pressure he was under because of my python like hug.

'Oh, sorry. I'm just really happy to be here. So, where's Ara?' I ask, looking around them to see if she was walking by.

'She took Father out shopping, demanding that he buy her the newest Quidditch broom, the Lightning Strike 01. It's the world's newest, fastest broom ever, apparently.' Malik answered.

'Which means, YOU need to find a hiding spot before Father gets home, and if you want my opinion, I would recommend the behind the bookshelf in the main family room.' Arsenio told me.

I was about to ask where that was, but the doorbell rang, cutting my off. 'Oh! The guests are starting to arrive!' Arsenio exclaimed excitedly, rushing out the door. Malik was about to follow, but I grabbed his arm, jerking him to a stop.

'Wait! Where's the main family room?' I ask frantically.

'Just shout for Napoleon. He will lead the way.' He answered quickly, and then dashed out of the room after Arsenio.

'Wait! Who's that? How does he know where I am?' I shout after them, but my questions remained unanswered. Disgruntled, I shout 'Napoleon! Can you come here?' into nothingness. Just as quickly as the name left my mouth, a small house elf appears in front of me.

'You called, Ms. Hermione?' he asked politely.

I was about to answer him, when something odd struck me. Napoleon wasn't like the other house elves that I've seen before. He was fully clothed in a mini butler suit, and he looked very well groomed. Well, at least for a house elf.

'Why are you dressed like that?' I ask him, confused.

He looked over himself, looking confused. 'Dressed like what, Ms. Hermione?'

I disregarded the question. 'Never mind. Can you show me where the main family room is?'

His face immediately lost all looks of confusion, and took my hand in his small one. 'Of course. This way Ms. Hermione.'

I gladly walked behind him as he led me through the hallway, when I remembered what I asked him before. 'Hey, Napoleon, why aren't you dressed in a… a…' I trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence.

'A tea bag, Ms. Hermione?' he filled in for me.

'Yeah. Are you…?' I trail off again, afraid of offending him.

'A slave, Ms. Hermione? No. I am not a slave. I, and the other elves, work for the noble Snape family.'

I was really shocked. _My father employs elves? Then that means… _'Does he pay you?' I ask eager to know.

'Yes, Ms. Hermione. He pays us 2 galleons for every event we help organize.' He answers.

I was still really shocked. _My father pays elves to work for him. _'Wait, so where did he come across you?' I inquired, curious to know.

'Master Snape recused most of us. Like me for instance. I used to work for the Lestrange family. Master Snape saw how abused I was, and he, well, he technically elf-napped me. Same goes for the other elves, who used to work for families such as the Macimer's, or the Riddle's.' he answered proudly. 

_Whoa, my father recused, and pays house elves. Where did that come from? _'Thanks Napoleon. Is this the family room?'

'Yes Ms. Hermione. Is there anything else you need?' he asks politely.

I hesitate for a moment, thinking about something. 'Actually, yes, there is Napoleon. Could you get me a piece of wood?' I ask him politely.

His face doesn't show any sign of confusion at my odd request. He just bows and disapparates, and moments later, he shows up with a block of polished maple wood. 'Is this ok, Ms. Hermione?' he asks, hoping not to disappoint me.

'This is wonderful! Thank you Napoleon.' I respond gleefully.

'Is there anything else you need, Ms. Hermione?' Napoleon asks.

'Yes.' I respond, smiling mischievously. He waited for my answer without a sound. 'Call me Hermione.' I smile down at him.

'Of course Hermione.' And with that, he disapparates.

I turn around to face the room. There is a great leather couch sitting in the middle of the room, surrounded by black leather chairs. In front of the chairs, there is a grand fireplace, and on either side of the fireplace, there were two giant, wooden bookshelves over flowing with books, just calling out to me to be read. As much as I want to get my hands on those dust covered books, but I have to find a hiding spot. _'I recommend behind the bookshelf in the main family room.' _So after that thought, I walk to the other side of the room, and weasel myself in between the wall space and the back of the bookshelf. It's a good thing that skinniness runs in the family, because I fit easily in between the space there. I try and reach out to my brothers to find out what's going on.

**'Hey, who's here? What's going on?' **I ask them.

** 'The Malfoy's, the Nott's, the Zabini's, the Parkinson's, and the Greengrass'. We're still waiting on the Crabbe's and the Goyle's. What's up with you? Did you find the main family room?' **Arsenio asks me.

**'Yeah, Napoleon led the way.' **I told them.

**'Ah, I see you found Napoleon. So what do you think of him?' **Malik asks me.

**'Oh, he's wonderful! And he's so honest!' **I told them.

**'What do you think of what Father does for them?' **Arsenio asks me, curious to know what I think.

**'I think it's amazing! I think what he is doing is very…noble.' **I finish, not completely satisfied with my adjective. Apparently Arsenio and Malik think so too.

**'Noble? So what is Father, a knight?' **Malik laughs.

**'Sir Severus, of the Snape Family!' **Arsenio joins, laughing as well.

**'Ah shut it.' **I snap at them, irritated.

**'Ah get over it luv. Oh! Arsenio, here come the Crabbe's and Goyle's! See you later Mia!' **Malik says, pulling out of the conversation, to greet the guests.

**'Yeah, see you soon Mione!' **Arsenio says, departing from the conversation.

As soon as they pulled out, I had the most brilliant idea. I pulled my wand out of my pocket, and grabbed the wood that Napoleon gave me off the floor. I transfigure it into a medium, 9 by 12 inch picture frame. I paint a mental image on my mind on what I want in it. When I open my eyes, I am greeted by my portrait. I painted a portrait of my family, with me sitting in the middle. My Father hand is on my shoulder, Ara is next to him, and the twins are on either side of me. Satisfied with my work, I hide in behind me, and eagerly wait for the guests to walk in here.

**'Ok, Mia, we're coming. Ara's bringing Father back.' **Arsenio told me, and moments later, a wave of people flooded into the room, chattering the whole way in. I can pick out the voices of Draco, and Pansy, who must be standing right in front of the bookshelf. I suddenly get this wicked idea. I slowly walk to the end of the bookshelf to see what end my friends were standing at. Just my luck, they are standing right in front of the bookshelf that I was hiding behind. I slowly show myself, and lean in close to Draco's ear, and I whisper in his pale ear, 'Boo.'

Draco literally jumped three feet in the air, and whipped around to see what scared him so badly. 'Hermione? What was that for?'

I was too busy laughing to tell him to be quieter, and clearly Pansy was too, because she had to prop herself up against the bookshelf to keep herself from falling flat on her face.

Draco had to try extremely hard not to give in and laugh with us. 'Seriously, Mione. Why would you do that to me? What did I do to deserve that heart attack?' he asks me jokingly.

'First off Draco, be quieter! I'm here to surprise my Father! And second, I did that, because I thought it would be funny, and it was!' I giggled, being thrown into another fit of laughter.

'Ah whatever. Just go hide behind your bookshelf.' Draco said, pushing me behind the bookshelf. The moment I was fully concealed by the bookshelf, my ears were immediately greeted by the sound of everyone in the room clapping. _Ah, my Father must be here. _

'Hey Father! Welcome home!' Arsenio greets him.

I can tell by the silence in the room that my Father was giving Arsenio a skeptical look, and I was proven correct when I hear my Father draws out, 'What did you break?'

'Oi! We didn't break anything! But we do have something for you.' Malik says, obviously giving me my cue. I step out from behind the bookshelf, and everyone in the room makes way for me. I walk up to my father, and give him a great big hug. He hugged me back, looking down at me. I look up at him, with a smile, and whisper 'Surprise.'

'Thank you Mia.' He whispered back to me. He released me, and looked at my brothers and my sister. 'Did you guys plan this?' he asked, with a smile on his face.

Malik smirked at my father, revealing his shiny white teeth. 'And you thought that we broke something.'

'Tisk tisk father. I didn't think that you thought so low of us. That hurts the soul, right here.' Arsenio smirks, putting a hand over his heart in mock hurt.

My Father rolled his eyes at his children, obviously amused.

'Come on! Let's get this party started!' Ara yells, turning up the music. All of the teenagers in the room move to the ballroom next door to go dance, leaving the parents in the family room to talk.

'Hey, Father, can I talk to you, maybe in the hallway?' I ask, turning to him.

'Sure Mia. Come on.' He answered, leading me to the hallway.

We walked out together, and down the hall until we were far enough away from the loud "Weird Sisters" blasting in the other room.

'What did you want to ask me?' my father asks me, turning to me with a questioning look on his face.

'Well, first off, I wanted to give you this.' I say, showing him the picture that I "painted."

I hand it to him, but I can't tell him what he's thinking, because his emotions are so well guarded. But after a few antagonizing moments, he pulls me close into a tight hug. I wrap my arms around him, and ask, 'So, you like it?'

He released me, and looks down at me, with pure love shining in his eyes. 'I love it. You know you didn't have to do this. You being here is enough.' He smiles.

'Well, I had to do something! I mean you are my Father.' I smile at him.

He smiles back, and asks, 'You wanted to know something else?'

'Oh, yeah, I met one of our house elves, his name is Napoleon, and he isn't like normal elves. He is fully dressed, fully groomed, and he says he is paid. Why?' I ask, giving him a questioning look.

He hesitates for a moment, thinking about how he should answer. 'It's your mother. She always opposed enslaving elves, so, when we moved to this house that came with house elves, she ordered me to free them. But she is the one that talked them into staying.' He answered.

I looked at him in awe. _My mother thought that? I must be more like her than I thought. _'Wow… you must have really loved her.' I immediately regretted the question as soon as it came out of my mouth.

The look on his face killed me. His face fell dramatically, and he turned away, but not before I saw how his eyes were glossed over.

'No, no I didn't mean to say that! It's just, you did all that for her…' I trail off, not knowing what to say.

'No, it's fine Mia. It's true, I loved you mother more than my own life. She was my life. And when she had you guys, it felt like pure euphoria. It was when she died, was when a good chunk of that euphoria was ripped away from me.' He looked at me, smiling. 'Go. You should go join your friends. They're waiting for you.'

I hug him one last time, and once he releases me, I turn the corner, and run into the ballroom to join my friends and family.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything! My queen, J.K Rowling owns the characters that are found in the Harry Potter series. I own the plot and my OC, but that's it. **

**A/N: Wow, you guys are getting lucky. But just because that I'm putting out this chapter sooner than usual, and it's all because of 'Firestormpwr.' **

**Firestormpwr: You know, you're right, and that's what I should do. Thank you. Thanks for catching that by the way. Apparently neither me nor my beta reader caught that, so thank you.**

**But just because you don't HAVE to review anymore, doesn't mean you shouldn't. It's great encouragement. **

**Anyway, enjoy!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 10

'Bye! See you at school!' I wave my friends out the door, as the party wraps to a close. I spent the past couple hours dancing with my old sworn arch enemies. Oh how the tables have turned. I check the clock sitting on the polished wood wall, and it reads 12:25. 'Crap.' I hiss under my breath. 'I have to get back to the Weasley's. We're going to King's Cross today. 'I inform my brothers, who were giving me a strange look.

'Aw, really, do you have to go? I mean you can always meet them there.' Malik offers, in a dejected but hopeful voice.

'She can't. I don't want her friends thinking something's up. Besides, your ferry for Durmstrang leaves at 11.' My father says, killing my brother's hope, but smiling nonetheless.

'Aw fine.' Malik says, walking up to me. 'Bye Mia. I'll see you during Christmas break.' And with that, he hugs me goodbye. I hug him back, and mumble into his shirt, 'Yeah, see you during Christmas.' He releases me, and heads up the spiral stairs to his bedroom.

'What? No hug for me?' Arsenio complains, holding his arms wide. I walk into them, embracing him with the same love as I did for Malik. 'Bye Arsenio.'

'Bye Mia.' He whispers, letting go. His face morphed into a look of shock, as he realizes, 'Ah crap! I forgot to pack!' And with that, he dashes out of the room, and up the stairs to begin packing.

I laugh at my brother's forgetfulness, and turn to give my sister a hug goodbye, who was waiting patiently for her turn. 'Bye Ara.' I say, enjoying my first hug with my older sister.

'Bye Mione. See you during Christmas.' She whispers, and walks out of the room, leaving me with my father as she departs to her bedroom.

I turn to my father who is looking at me playfully. 'So where's mine?' he asks jokingly, holding his arms out. I walk straight into them, embracing my father. 'I love you Father.'

He looks down at me lovingly. 'I love you too Mia. I'll see you at school.' He says, pushing me towards the fireplace. 'Oh, and I can't act any differently to you ok? I don't want anyone to get suspicious of anything.'

I laugh, because he's told me this before. 'I know Father. See you later.' I grab a handful of floo powder, and shout, 'The Burrow!' and the green flames engulf me once again, but not before I catch one last look at my Father, waving goodbye with a smile on his face.

I once again land ungracefully on the floor, at Mrs. Weasley's feet, with her angry face staring down at me. 'Hi Mrs. Weasley, I'm back.' I greet her, uncertainly.

Her face loses all sign of anger, as she helps me off the floor. 'Hello dear. Why are you home so late?' she asks, brushing the dirt off of my shirt.

'Oh, my dad's party ran late. I'm sorry I wasn't back earlier.' I apologize, hating myself for lying to Mrs. Weasley, who has pretty much been my second mom ever since I met her.

'It's fine dear, just head up to bed. We're leaving for King's Cross at 10.' She informs me.

'Alright, thanks Mrs. Weasley.' I thank her, walking up the old, creaking stairs to my room, where Ginny is fast asleep. I pull out my wand, whispering 'Scorigify,' and my body feels instantly cleaner. I silently change into my pajamas, and hop in bed, as sleep instantly overtakes me.

I wake up nine hours later, at 9:25. I can tell that Ginny is already up, because her bed is cleanly made, and she is nowhere to be seen, in the old, dusty, tiny room. I get out of bed, and get dressed in a white blouse and jeans, and brushed my hair into a neat ponytail. I didn't notice till today, but I am back to my 'concealed' self, with my bushy brown hair, and chocolate brown eyes. I smile at my reflection and head downstairs where I am greeted by Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, Fred, and George.

'Good Morning Mione!' Ginny exclaims, motioning for me to sit down next to her.

'Good Morning Ginny.' I say smiling, taking the empty seat next to her.

'Hey Hermione, think fast!' Fred shouts at me suddenly, throwing me a shiny red apple. I must have given him a skeptical look, because he said, 'I didn't do anything to it! I just felt bad about taking a small persons apple from them.' Fred jokes, smiling.

'Oi, I'm not that short! I'm just shorter than you! I'm 5'6!' I exclaim, but quickly shut my mouth, regretting that I let that slip.

He gives me a funny look, and begins to laugh. 'You are? Last time I was informed, you were 5'4. You can't make yourself any taller than you are now.'

'Ok! You caught me! I was trying to size myself up to the great and mighty 5'7 Fred Weasley!' I joke, throwing my hands in mock defeat, but inside, I'm relived he took that as a joke.

The four of us started talking and joking, until Mrs. Weasley came up to us and asked, 'Hermione? Will you go and wake up the boys? We're going to be late; I mean it's already 9:45.'

I smile at Mrs. Weasley. 'Of course, I'll be right back.' I get up, and run up the crooked staircase, and walk into Harry and Ron's room. I laugh to myself at the sight of the two of them. Harry's all sprawled out in his bed, and Ron is pretty much hanging over the side of his bed with drool coming out the side of his mouth.

I quietly walk over to Harry, and whisper, 'Time to get up.' I don't want to scare Harry as much as I do Ron. Harry slowly opens his eyes, and smiles up at me. 'Hey Mione.' He sits up, and grabs his glasses off of his nightstand. 'Sorry, we were trying to wait for you to come home, but Ron fell asleep, so I had to levitate him up here.' He said with a smile.

I smile back at him. 'That's so Ron. Hey, we're leaving soon. Go get dressed. Mrs. Weasley has your breakfast.

He hopped out of bed, and into the bathroom next door to get dressed. I smiled at Harry's retreating figure, and then walked over to Ron's bed, gently sitting next to him. I grab my wand out my pocket, and I levitate the small, dead spider corpse near the window. I enlarge it, and place it on Ron's bed, right beside his face. After that was complete, I whisper in Ron's ear, wake up Ron.' He stirs slightly, opening his eyes. His eyes really pop out of his head as his eyes meet the dead spider corpse.

'BLOODY HELL! ' He screams, pulling his bed covers over his body, hyperventilating.

I was on the floor clutching my stomach because it hurt so much from laughing.

'I... I wish I…had a...f-freeze fr-ame…of y-your face!' I stutter in between my laughing.

Ron calmed down enough to put two and two together. 'Hermione? What was that for?' Ron shouts at me, but I can tell that he isn't mad because the corners of his mouth are twitching upward, as he tries to prevent himself from smiling at my laughing figure on the floor.

I calmed down enough to tell him why. 'I'm sorry Ron.' I told him, looking at him straight in the eye, with a sincere look on my face. 'You are just so fun to prank. No wonder you're Fred and George's favorite brother.' I say, shrinking the spider down back to its microscopic size.

Ron gave me a funny look. 'I'm Fred and George's favorite brother?' he asks with a questioning look on his face.

'Well, yeah. I mean Bill's a werewolf, Charlie's always off with his dragons, and Percy is a stuck up stick in the mud sometimes, even though I do respect his philosophy of sticking by the rules. But, you probably give the best reactions out of any one in this house.' I say with a smile, helping him up. 'Now go get dressed. We're leaving for King's Cross in 10 minutes.'

Ron gives me one of those goofy Ron smiles, and heads for the bathroom to get dressed, while I head back downstairs. Once I enter the kitchen, which smells like French toast, Harry comes up to me. 'What did you do to Ron to make him scream so badly?' she asks.

'Well, I enlarged a dead spider corpse onto his bed, right next to his face.' I say with a proud smile.

Ginny, Harry, Fred and George immediately burst into a fit of laughter. 'Hermione! You're a genius!' Fred exclaimed propping himself up on the counter by his hand, while his other clutches his stomach.

'Why haven't we thought of that?' George asks his brother, once they have both calmed down.

Fred shrugged his shoulders. 'That is an excellent question. But now that we know, I think we outta try it out for ourselves.

'Read my mind.' George says, smiling broadly.

Just then, Ron comes downstairs and enters the kitchen, which sends Fred and George back into another fit of laughter. 'What's so funny?' Ron asks, grabbing a banana off of the counter.

It only takes one word for Ron to realize why Fred and George were laughing so hard, and that word came stumbling out of Fred's mouth. 'Spider.'

Ron gives me that accusing look, but I smile and shrug it off.

'Come on! We're going to be late! And your stuff is already in the car! Let's go!' Mrs. Weasley said, motioning for us to follow her out of the door.

We walked outside, and we all got inside of the Weasley's new Ford Anglia, since Ron destroyed the old one, he was responsible for buying the family a new one.

We arrived at Kings' Cross about five minutes later, talking the whole way there.

'Come on kids, your train leaves in five minutes!' Mrs. Weasley said, getting out of the car.

We all got out of the car, and put our luggage on our trolleys Mrs. Weasley got for us. We made our way to platform 9 ¾, and entered.

'I'll take your luggage to the train.' Mrs. Weasley said, and with the wave of her wand, she cast a spell that made the luggage magically float behind her.

Once she was out of earshot, I began talking to Ginny once more, until we were interrupted by a long, drawn out sneer.

'Well, if it isn't the Weasel Clan, Scarface, and the Mudblood.' I heard Draco's drawn out voice. I spin around to see that he is accompanied by Pansy, Blaise, Theo, Astoria, and Crabbe & Goyle.

'Sod off Malfoy!' Ron snarled, stepping in front of me.

'Oh! Is the weasel defending his precious little mudblood?' Pansy sneered.

Ron stepped forward in a menacing manner, but Harry grabbed his shoulder, and shook his head.

'Good thinking Scarface, keeping the weasel from doing something that would get his arse expelled. It's too bad; I mean his mother could probably use all the help she can get, leading a clan of nasty, blood traitors everywhere.' Theo said sarcastically, it mock congratulations.

'Better shut up before I show you what a blood traitor can really do!' Fred exclaimed angrily, pulling out his wand. But the moment he did that, Malfoy and everyone in his group pulled out their wands as well. 'Do you really want to go there, twin weasel? Do you really want to duel against someone who was raised in the dark arts?' Astoria sneered, raising her wand higher.

'Come on guys; let's just get on the train.' I whispered, loudly enough for everyone to hear. Fred lowered his wand, and the others follow me onto the train.

'You filthy bunch of cowards! Let the mudblood boss you around like that! You'll see! The Dark Lord will take care you, filthy little mudblood.' Draco sneered, walking up behind me, cutting me off from the Weasley's.

'Get away from me Draco.' I whisper.

He, and everyone else took that by extreme surprise. Draco's cold face was momentarily disrupted by my use of his first name, but it was quickly replaced with malice. 'Don't you DARE call me by my first name, you ungrateful piece of filth! And you better stay away before I get lung cancer from breathing air that's been through you.' And with that, Draco stormed off, pushing the Weasley's out of his way.

'See you around, Mudblood.' Theo sneered in my ear, shoving past me. Astoria, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle shoved past me as well, leaving Zabini, who was staring at me, with malice filled eyes.

'Better watch your mouth mudblood, or the next time you slip up none of us will be that nice.' He said evenly, and with that, he strode past me and onto the train. I knew what he meant by that. The next time I slip up like that, it's going to stir up much more than suspicion.

'Come on Hermione. Let's go find an empty compartment.' Harry says, grabbing my arm gently, and leading me onto the train. Fred and George left to go sit with Lee Jordan, while the rest of us go search for an empty compartment.

We find one close to the end of the train, and the four us close the door, and take a seat.

'What happened back there Hermione?' Ron said, cutting right to the chase.

I momentarily stopped breathing. _What am I supposed to say?_ 'I thought it would throw Malfoy off long enough so I could get away.' I whispered, through the tears that were threatening to fall from my eyes.

'Oh Hermione, come here.' Ginny says ushering me towards her, so I can lay my head on her shoulder. 'We've seen you deal with Malfoy before, what makes this time any different?' she asks gently. Obviously, Ron and Harry wanted to know the answer as well, because they both put their elbows on their knees and leaned forward.

'Oh, I don't know. It's just he's so…frustrating! I mean, what did any of us ever do to that ungrateful little worm?' I lied through my teeth, hoping they would believe me, and besides, I didn't put a lot of emotion into my voice.

'Well, I did reject his friendship back it our 1st year.' Harry said, successfully breaking the tension. We all laugh, and we dissolve into a joke-filled conversation about Ron's phobia of spiders.

'Come on you guys, the train is pulling into the station.' Ginny says, standing up and stretching out her limbs. I do the same, and open the door.

Students flood out of the train, and head towards the carriages. I grab one with Harry, Ron, and Ginny.

'So what do you think this year will be like? A vampire teacher, or perhaps a 3-headed class pet?' Harry jokes.

We all laugh, except for Ron, who hasn't said anything since we got off the train. 'What's wrong Ron?' I ask worriedly.

He looks at me, and mumbles, 'I'm hungry.' We all break into another fit of laughter.

The carriages arrived at Hogwarts minutes later. 'You know Ron, is there ever a time where you don't think about food?' Ginny asks, smiling.

'Yes!' Ron declared loudly. 'In fact, every time we face death in the face, I think about getting out alive!.'

'So you can eat?' I add innocently. That makes everyone laugh, except for Ron, who just pouts the rest of the way into the Great Hall.

We all take our seats at the Gryffindor table, and wait for the feast to begin.

'Welcome back students, for another year at Hogwarts! But just before we start the sorting, there is one thing I would like to announce. For the first time, Hogwarts will not only be your home, but it will be the home of students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, because for the first time, Hogwarts is hosting the Twi-wizard Tournament.' Dumbledore announces loudly.

My heart leaps at the sound of my brother's school. I completely ignore the sounds of the students from the other schools coming in and making their big entrance.

**'Hey, did you guys here about the Twi-Wizard Tournament being held here at Hogwarts?' **I ask them excitedly.

**'Yeah! We did!' **Arsenio exclaimed excitedly

**'Well? Did you get to come?' **I asked them, waiting in anticipation.

**'Why don't you turn around?' **Malik suggested mischievously.

I turn around just in time for the end of Durmstrang entrance. I study every students face when they stopped and bowed down to their headmaster, and sure enough, there were my brothers, kneeing in front of me.

**'Oh Merlin, this is amazing! You guys are actually here!' **I shout mentally, grinning so broadly that it causes my friends to give me weird looks.

I must have mentally shouted pretty loud too, because my brothers physically cringed too.  
><strong>'Christ Woman! Are you trying to give the two of us mental damage?<strong>!' Arsenio snapped back.

'**Sorry, I am just so excited**! **I get to go to school with the two of you!' **I say gleefully.

'**Well, sorta.' **Malik says, his voice losing all sign of excitement.

'**We are only here to help our school champion. But don't get us wrong, we still are going to have that opportunity to talk to you,' **Arsenio trails off.

'**Our main purpose here is to help our school champion win.' **Malik finishes.

I sigh dejectedly. **'Alright. Just as long as I get to talk to you face to face, I'll be fine.' **

**'That's the spirit luv.' **Malik says soothingly.

Just at that moment, Dumbledore began to speak again. 'Remember students, only 6th and 7th year students may enter the tournament. At with that, let the feast begin!'


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything! My (and your) Queen, J.K Rowling owns everything you recognize from the Harry Potter series. **

**A/N: Hey everyone! I just want to give a big shout out to Elfsquire90, who gave me a brilliant idea. ;) Thanks a lot! Keep reviewing! **

**Enjoy the latest chapter! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 11

'May I have your attention please.'

I stop talking with Ginny to hear what Dumbledore has to say. 'Students, the Goblet will choose 3 champions to compete in the Twi-wizard tournament. You have till tomorrow night to enter. Remember, 6th and 7th years only. Goodnight!' Dumbledore ends on a happy note, dismissing us to bed.

'Come on guys.' Harry said, standing up and heading towards the door.

'I'm telling you Hermione! I can swear on Ron's grave that Viktor was staring at you back there during the feast.' Ginny exclaimed.

'Hey!' Ron shouted, annoyed.

'It's fine Ron. And Ginny, that's rubbish. Why would the youngest and probably one of the most talented Quidditch players be starting at me?' I scoff.

'I'm just saying. Fine out for yourself if you don't believe me.' Ginny says. 'Fair-hearted.' Ginny said, turning towards the Fat Lady, and enters the common room.

'Fine. Maybe I will. I'm going to bed. And on my way up there, maybe I will ask gossip central if they saw anything. Goodnight.' I say, walking up to the girl's dormitories.

'Night Mione!' Harry yells from the bottom of the stairs.

'Goodnight Hermione.' Ron shouts from beside Harry.

I laugh, not believing a word Ginny said. I suppose I will find out if she was lying or not. I walk into my bedroom, that I share with Pavarti, Lavender, and Ginny, only to find Pavarti and Lavender on their beds, squealing loudly.

I sigh loudly, hoping they weren't squealing about anything that related to me.

'Oh Hermione! Over here!' Pavarti squeals, getting up and pulling me over to their Gossip HQ.

'Ah…what is it? I'm tired!' I sigh exasperated.

She pushed me down onto the bed, squealing the entire time. 'So is it true?' Lavender asks excitedly.

'Ugh... be clearer! Is what true?' I say exasperated.

'Is it true that Viktor Krum was staring at you during the feast?' Lavender clarifies.

'Because we would like to know if you saw, because we did!' Pavarti says, smiling.

My eyes widened. 'I don't know! Why would you care?'

'We are the queens of gossip at this school, and it is never too early to start!' Pavarti says smartly.

'And according to our collogues in Slytherin, Malfoy was staring at you too!' Pavarti squeals.

If my eyes were to widen any further, they would have popped out of my head. 'What? Are you kidding me? Actually, yes, you are. There is no way that Malfoy was staring at me. This is Malfoy were talking about! He hates me; I'm a muggleborn for Merlin's sake!' I shout, standing up forcefully.

'Think what you want Hermione!' Pavarti said in a sing-song voice.

'But we know what we saw.' Lavender finished in the same voice.

'Yeah yeah. Goodnight you two.' I say, climbing into bed, and await for sleep to overtake me.

'Wake up Mione! Come on! We're going to be late!'

My eyes pop open at the sound of my least favorite word, "Late." 'Oh Merlin! I've over-slept! What's my first class? Am I late? Oh Merlin I've missed breakfast!' I jump out of bed and start scrambling.

'Hermione, Hermione! Calm down! You haven't missed anything!' Ginny says, trying to calm me down.

I stop scrambling, listening to what Ginny's telling me. 'What? Why not?'

'Dumbledore postponed all classes till tomorrow, because tonight, the Goblet is choosing the champions. So, Dumbledore gave us a chance to just relax today.' Ginny reassures me, smiling.

I sigh relieved. 'Thanks Ginny.' I smile at her. 'I'm going to the library.' I rush out the door, and down the stairs.

'Hey Mione! Want to go down the lake with Ron and me?' Harry asked me, smiling.

'I will later. I'm going to the library.' I say, rushing out the door.

** 'Hey, can you two meet me in the library in 5 minutes?' **I ask the twins.

**'Sure. We'll be there!' **Arsenio responded.

I smile to myself, and head towards the library, until I run into someone.

'Oh, I'm sor...' the person began. 'Granger? Watch where you're going you pathetic mudblood!' Malfoy exclaims, angrily.

'Malfoy?' I whisper.

Draco looks around to make sure no one's around, then turns back to me with a smile on his face rather than a cruel smirk. 'Hey Mione. What are you doing?' he asks me.

'I was heading to the library to meet Arsenio and Malik there.' I inform him.

A smile lights his face. 'I'm going to go get the others; we can all meet in the library, and go hang out by the lake. Is that okay?' he asks.

'Sure, but I promised Harry and Ron that we could hang out together later, so not for so long, okay?' I answer.

I notice that his face falters at the sound of Harry and Ron's name, but it's quickly replaced by a smile. 'Sure Hermione. Meet you in the library in 5 minutes.' And with that, he runs back the way he came, to get his friends.

I, on the other hand, head to the library, and head to the very back, while I wait for my brothers to show up.

**'I'm the back of the library.' **I tell them.

'Yeah, we know.'

My head jerks up, and a smile spreads across my face. I run up and hug them both quickly, then I let go.

'Nice to see you too Mia!' Malik smiles at me.

'Oh, Draco and his friends are going to meet us here in 5 minutes, and then we're all going to head down to the lake to hang out. Is that okay?' I ask them.

'Yeah, sure. It's fine. We were their friends before they were yours. Just remember that.' Arsenio points out smartly.

'Ah don't go all cheeky on me.' I say, lightly punching him in the arm.

'Break it up you two!'

I spin around, praying that no one caught me doing that, but my worry quickly fades when I see Draco standing at the entrance of the small section.

'Hey guys!' I greet them all.

'Hey Mione.' Theo says, smiling at me.

Pansy looks at me, with a curious look in her eyes. 'Um, Hermione? Now that we're all in here, how do you think we're going to get out without causing any suspicion?'

I smirk at her. 'No worries Pansy dear. You're looking at the best witch in her year. Watch.' I pick up the heaviest, biggest book in the room, and carry it over to Draco, and drop it on his foot. Hard.

Draco yelped in pain. 'Granger? What the hell was that for?'

'It's for being in my way Malfoy!' I answer angrily.

The others seem to catch onto my plan pretty fast. 'You just better watch where you're going Mudblood!' Blaise yells, fake malice lacing his smooth words.

'Sod off! Every single one of you! I am so _sick _of dealing with your crap!' I yell at them. And with that, I storm out of the library, hoping they catch my drift.

**'Okay, you guys can follow now.' **I inform my brothers once I am a safe distance away.

**'Okay. We'll meet you on the far side of the lake.' **Arsenio responds back.

I make my way to the far side of the lake, just brushing the edge of the Forbidden Forest. I notice that they aren't here yet, so I sit down on the large rock in front of me and wait.

A couple of minutes later, I hear footsteps coming from behind me, I turn around, but no one's there. That is, until I feel the light touch of finger tips brushing across my back. I scream bloody murder and jump of the rock; pulling my wand out and aiming at the person who scared me, who just so happened to be a very frightened looking Draco Malfoy.

'Draco? You scared me!' I proclaim, taking a seat back on the rock.

'Really? I didn't notice!' he said, laughing. I notice that the others were stumbling out of the woods, clutching their stomachs from laughing.

'I'm sorry, it was my idea.' Arsenio said, holding his arms up in mock surrender.

'Hey! That wasn't cool! What have I ever done to you to make me deserve that! I think my heart stopped for a moment there!' I exclaim, glaring at Arsenio with mock hate.

'Well, you disappeared from our childhood for 9 or so years.' Malik offered, smiling meekly.

'Well it isn't my fault that Voldemort wanted me!' I say loudly.

'Yeah yeah. We all heard the story. So now on to more important matters.' Theo cuts in.

We all look at him expectantly. 'The tournament of course!'

(4 hours later)

I laugh at Astoria's joke, until I notice how far the sun has gone down. 'Merlin! What time is it?'

'I don't know, maybe about 6 or so?' Crabbe guesses.

'Crap! I was supposed to meet Harry and Ron over 2 hours ago!' I say, panicking. 'I will see you guys later okay?' I shout back to them, as I begin running up the hill back to the castle.

'Sure Mia.' Malik calls back, turning his attention to the group.

I run through the crowded hallways to the Gryffindor common room. 'Fair-hearted!' I shout at the Fat Lady, who gives me a nasty glance before she lets me in.

'Hermione? Where have you been?' Ron asks, slightly irritated.

'Wh-where have I been?' I stutter out. 'I-I lost track of time in the library.' I stammer out.

Harry gives me a funny look. 'Well are you okay? I mean you just came in here panting, like you were at the lake or something.'

I mentally freeze, which means I probably physically cringed too. 'T-the lake? W-why would I b-be there?'

'I don't know. You tell me. Anyway, come on. Since you wasted our relaxing time with you in the library, we might as well head down to the Great Hall. The feast will start soon.' Harry says, walking towards the entrance, waiting for Ron and me to follow.

The three of walk into the crowded Great Hall, and take our seats at our table. Ginny walks in and takes the empty seat next to me.

'Hey Mione! Did you find out the truth yesterday?' she asks me slyly.

I sigh loudly. 'Yes Ginny. I did.'

'Oh! So is it true?' she asks, excitedly.

Before I can answer, Dumbledore begins to speak. 'Welcome students. Now, before we begin the feast, I assume you all heard that the Goblet of Fire will choose 3 champions to participate in the Twi-wizard tournament!'

The Great Hall erupts in cheers, but Dumbledore waves his hand to quiet them all down. 'Alright. Without further ado, let's get started! Starting with the Hogwarts Champion.' He waits till a piece of paper erupts out of the Goblet, and floats down to Dumbledore's hand. 'And the Hogwarts champion is, Cedric Diggory!'

The Hufflepuff table erupts in a massive movement of cheers, as they push Cedric out of the table, and push him towards Dumbledore. He gives him a pat on the back, and he walks over to stand on the rise at the front of the Hall.

'The Durmstrang Champion is…' he waits once again for the paper to fall. 'Viktor Krum.' And an even louder cheer erupts itself from the Great Hall, as Viktor strides across the hall to take his place next to Cedric, with a large smirk on his face.

'Finally, the Beauxbatons champion is… Fleur Delacour!' The Great Hall once again erupts in a wave of applause, as Fleur takes her place up on the stage as well.

'Well there you have it! Here are our 3 champions! Now, let the feast…' Dumbledore stops, as the Goblet shoots out another name. Dumbledore catches it, and reads it, his eyes covered over with disbelief. 'Harry Potter.' He whispers. 'HARRY POTTER!' he yells into the Great Hall, furious eyes scanning over the hall. I feel Harry next to me tense up. 'Harry, go.' I whisper, pushing him up. 'For goodness sake, go!' I say pushing him all the way up, as he makes his way towards Dumbledore.

'He's a cheat!'

'How'd ya do it Potter?'

'He's only a 4th year!'

Harry turns back to the Gryffindor table with a look of pure horror on his face. I try and give him a look of understanding, but he turns away before he can see it.

The Great Hall is completely silent. 'Well, now. Let the feast beg-..' Dumbledore is once again interrupted by the Goblet shooting up one more piece of paper, with one name on it. Dumbledore catches it, and reads the name out loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

"Malik Alexander Snape"


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything! I only own my ever growing plot. Oh… I'm so excited! This is going to get real good, real fast. **

**A/N: Ok! Here's another chapter. There is going to be a ton of drama for sure, and, I'm cooking up something extra on the side. Hehe…. **

**Enjoy!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 12

Time stands still, and I'm pretty sure I stopped breathing for a full 5 minutes. It seemed to be that way for the whole Great Hall. I sit, paralyzed by shock, fear, anguish, you name it, as I watch helplessly as my brother slowly walks up to my headmaster, despite the desperate cries of Arsenio, who tries to pull him back. I turn to see what my father thought of this, and I notice for the first time, there is a look of pure horror on my father's face.

'Snape has a _son?_' Ron whispered exasperated.

'Who would want to have a child with _him?_' Seamus whispered back to Ron, snickering.

My angered flared inside of me, and I'm about to release it when Malik walks by me, looking at me with a look probably mirrored my Father's, Arsenio's, and my expression. Horror, fear, and terror.

I try and murmur something to him, but he walks away before he can hear it. He walks up to Dumbledore, who shoves the piece of paper in his hand, and pushes him towards the door where the champions before him went.

'Now, let the feast begin, before the Goblet decided to spit out another name.' Dumbledore said on a fake happy note, the promptly strode out of Great Hall, followed by my Father, Mr. Crouch, and Professor McGonagall.

'How'd he do it?' Ron asks, breaking me out of my thoughts.

'How did who do what?' I ask impatiently.

'How did Harry and that other kid get their name in the Goblet? Both Fred and George tried, but they ended up growing a long, white beard! How did they manage to do it?' Ron said, irritated

'I don't know Ron!' I say angrily. 'You know, I'm not hungry, and I've got a headache. I'm leaving.' I say, and leave the Great Hall.

It's true, the moment Malik's name was shot out of the Goblet, I've been feeling a huge wave of fear and terror coming from Arsenio. Upset by the whole ordeal, I ran outside, and went to my favorite spot by the lake. Under the willow tree, that lays at the surface of the lake. After making sure no one followed me, I fell to my knees, and burst out crying.

**'Hermione? W-what's wrong?' **Arsenio asked worriedly.

'**N-nothing. Can you p-please just come outside? Under the willow tree right next to the lake.' **I desperately say, just wanting to be in the company of family.

'**I'll be right there.' **Arsenio says. And true to his word, he shows up seconds later, with tears streaming down his face.

I run to him, burying my face in my shoulder and cry.

'Sh… It's going to be ok.' He whispers, trying not to let his voice crack.

I stare up at him in disbelief. 'Are you kidding? He's going to get hurt! Or killed! I just found you guys and now he's going to get-' I choked on my tears, falling to my knees again.

Arsenio falls to his knees, dropping his head in his hands, releasing all of his anguish in one drawn out cry. 'I-I know! I'm, I'm just trying t-to convince m-myself that he's going to be o-ok.' He cries.

I inch over to him, and wrap my arms around him, and just let him cry. 'You're right. He's a smart guy, he'll get through this. He'll come out alive. And who knows, there is no way that Father is going to stand for this. He'll get Malik out of this.'

He looks up at me and smiles weakly. 'You're right. There is no way that Father is going to let Malik compete in this.'

'There you go. Malik is in no danger. And he is probably with Father right now. We can always ask him.' I say encouragingly.

'Well, let's give this a shot.' He says, sitting up, concentrating.

**'Malik, how are you? Are you ok?' **Arsenio asks gently.

**'I, I don't want to talk about it.' **Malik says back indifferently.

**'Malik, what's wrong?' **I ask worriedly.

**'I just don't want to talk about!' **Malik yells, pulling out.

Arsenio and I cringed, mentally and physically. 'Arsenio…'

'I'm leaving. I'll see you tomorrow.' And he hastily stood up and strode away.

'Arsenio, wait.' I say, standing up as well and running towards.

He waited for me to catch up, crying silently. 'Hey, he's going to be ok. I promise.' I say, putting my hand on his slumped shoulder.

'Yeah, I suppose so.' He says, quietly.

'I know so. And you know what else?' I ask, smirking slightly.

He turns and looks and looks at me with a curious smirk on his face. 'What?'

'We can always help him out. He has help, and the others don't.' I smirk.

He breaks into a loud laugh, rewarding me for successfully breaking the tension. 'Yeah, we won't let him die. Especially not you, with your brains and wit.'

'And your humor. We're going to keep him sane.' I smile, walking up to the entrance to the castle, and wait for him to follow. 'Come on, everyone is starting to leave.'

He walks back up to me, and giving me one last hug before he leaves. 'Bye Mia. I'll see you later.'

'You too.' I say back, smiling at his retreating figure, as he catches up with his Durmstrang friends. As soon as he is out of sight, I turn and head to for the Gryffindor common room.

'Courage and Bravery.' I say to the Fat Lady. She swings open the portrait and lets me in.

'How'd you do it?' I hear someone yell.

'I didn't do anything Ron!'

I step into the common room, only to be greeted by the sight of my two best friends yelling at each other. 'Hey! What's going on here?' I ask, stepping in between the two of them.

'I don't know! Ron just stormed in here and asked how I put my name in the Goblet, which I didn't!' Harry explains.

'I'm done with this.' Ron says, storming out of the common room and up to the boy's dormitories.

Harry sighs loudly, walking over to the couch and plopping down it. 'I didn't put my name in that Goblet Hermione.' He sighs, defeated.

I go over to him, and put my hand on his shoulder, and rub it comfortingly. 'I believe you Harry.'

He sighs again, and looks up at me. 'Neither did that Malik kid, Snape's kid.' Harry said.

I don't say anything, so he continues. 'Can you believe it? Snape has a kid, two actually. Malik said he had a twin.'

_He also has two sisters, and you're talking to one of them. _I think, but I don't say anything. 'I actually do. I'm going to bed. Goodnight Harry.' I say, walking up to the girl's dormitories.

'Goodnight Hermione' Harry says quietly.

I wake up to the sound of a light tapping on the glass window next to my bed. I quietly get out of bed and go to see what the noise is. I open the window, and greet a black owl with bright violet eyes.

'Hey Mia.' I greet the owl, stroking her beak affectionately. She hoots happily, and flies over to my bed, and perches herself on my bed, and begins cleaning her feathers. I walk over to her, and gently untie the letter from her foot, and open it.

Dear Mia,

Meet me in my office, now. Tell your brothers. And come alone.

-Father

I look around to make sure no one is around, before I get dressed. Ginny is still asleep, and Lavender and Pavarti aren't in the dorm, so I rush to get dressed in my school uniform. After I'm satisfied, I rush down stairs and throw the letter in the fire. I stand by to make sure no one is around. Lucky for me that the common room was empty, so I rush out of the common room door and dash down the hall.

**' Hey, can you guys meet me in the Great Hall?' **I ask them.

**'Mia? It's 6:30. What are you doing up at 6:30 in the morning?' **Malik asked.

**'Father needs to see us, now.' **I say impatiently.

**'I don't want to talk to Father. I'm going back to sleep.' **Arsenio said, irritated, beginning to pull out.

**'Arsenio! Now! Father needs to talk to this! He could have figured out why your name was put in the Goblet in the first place!' **I exclaim, irritated with my brother.

**'Coming!' **Arsenio said, with a whole different attitude.

I sit on the bench, and wait for my brothers. 5 minutes later, my brothers show up, dressed in identical solid black uniforms, staring at me with curiosity and boredom.

'What is it?' Malik asks curiously.

'Father wants us to come and see him.' I say, standing up, making sure the coast was clear.

'What about?' Arsenio asks, with a bit of anger laced in with his voice.

'I don't know. Come on, it's probably important.' I begin walking, waiting for my brothers to follow me.

'Ok, let's go.' Malik said, running to catch up to, with Arsenio right on his tail.

We round the corner in silence, with the tension following us the whole way there, all the way to Father's office. We stop walking when we reach Father's office. 'Arsenio?'

'What?' he asks rudely.

I cringe, but ask anyway. 'Is something wrong? You're not acting like yourself.'

'How do know what I'm normally like? You've only know me for a month, maybe two at most! Stop trying to act like you know what I'm going through!' he yells, storming through the door.

I feel my body cringe, as well as my brother's body next to me. 'Come on.' I say gently, pushing him through the door.

'Come in, and sit down on one of the desks.'

We enter the classroom, where Father is pacing in the front of the classroom, and Arsenio has his arms crossed, and glaring daggers at the wall, as if he wanted the wall to melt before his very eyes. Arsenio and I tried to take a seat next to him, but all it took was one glare at the two of us to make us move away to the table next to it.

'There's no point in trying to sugar coat it. So, I'm just going to come out with it. Karkaroff found out that you two are my sons. Hermione, he doesn't know about you or Ara. That's why he put your name in the Goblet. Same with Potter. He wants you both to die.' My Father says, coming right out with.

I gasp, quietly, as a million questions come running through my mind. My Father must know me better than I thought, because he said, 'I know you must have a million questions, so out with them Mia.' He says with an all-knowing-smile.

'First off, how do you know someone isn't listening right now?' I ask.

'I cast about 20 charms on this room to make sure no one could open it while we were in here, and to make sure no one can overhear anything. Next?' he answers.

'Why would Karkaroff want revenge of any sort on you?' I ask, jumping right to what I wanted to know.

My Father sighs and Arsenio snaps out of his cold demeanor, and Malik brought his attention from the roof to my Father. 'You all know that I am a spy for Dumbledore, and I am in fact a Death Eater. Karkaroff sensed my disloyalty, and he followed me home one day, and saw the two of you there. Ara was out of the house, and Hermione didn't know about us yet. I caught him, and made him swear to secrecy, and for some reason, he said he would swear that he wouldn't tell Voldemort. But for some reason, he went back on his word. He also went back on his word about not doing anything to Potter. But that one is understandable. Anymore?' he explains, now waiting for me to ask my next and last question.

I hesitate, taking one look at Arsenio, before I ask. 'What's wrong with Arsenio?'

I must have struck a really sensitive nerve, because Arsenio glared daggers at me, and shouted 'What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you? How can you not be worried about Malik? How insensitive could you be? I mean sure, you've only known his for one month, but he could DIE! You said it yourself! He could DIE!' he yelled at me, his violet eyes glaring maliciously at me. But for some reason, it didn't seem that his eyes were filled with malice, they were filled with something else, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

He then rounded on Father, pointing an accusing finger at him. 'And you! How could just stand aside and throw your own son into the fire! You finally have your family back together, and you're not even going to FIGHT to get him out of this? He could DIE! What would you do then? Go and fine another lost child? Who knows? Maybe we have some long lost brother from Romania! Or Egypt! Mother would have NEVER allowed this!'

I could tell that THAT accusation really struck a nerve. But not in the way you would expect. Father's eyes glassed over, as he continued to stare at Arsenio, both gazes held, unblinking. 'Maybe you're right. Maybe if your Mother were still here, she could have prevented all of this.' He said quietly, sitting down on his desk, dropping his gaze with Arsenio, and taking a sudden interest on the slime stain on the cold cement floor.

'Hey, I'm going to be fine.' Malik said suddenly, walking up to Arsenio, and putting a hand on his shoulder. 'Is this why you've been so, out of it? You're worried about me?' Malik asks.

'Of course I am! My own brother is being thrown unwillingly into the most dangerous wizarding games ever! How could I not be worried about you? You're my twin, a living replica of me.'

'He technically IS a living replica of you Arsenio. He's just as smart too.' I say, walking over to the two of them, sitting behind them on the desk. 'And don't forget, he has our help too. He's going to be kicking some serious arse with our help. The top students in our class, they better watch what they throw at Malik, because he's just going to send it scurrying back, crying for mercy.' I laugh weakly, trying to defuse the heavy tension present in the room.

'Oh yeah! I totally forgot about that! You could totally help me if I forget how to do something, and you can give me pointers, who knows, I might win with your help!' Malik exclaims excitedly.

Arsenio and I laugh, glad that the tension that was once present in the room has decided to disappear. 'You're going to be fine Malik. We all believe in you.' I say encouragingly.

'I know now, thanks to you all.' He says, giving us all a hug.

'Um, hey, Mia?' Arsenio begins awkwardly.

I take my head off of Malik's shoulder to look at him. 'Yeah Arsenio?'

'I'm so sorry about what I said, and the way I've been acting. I didn't mean any of that. I know that you are worried about Malik, but you just kept a calmer head.' He apologizes.

'Hey, it's ok. I mean, he IS the one you grew up with. I understood why you acted that way.' I say, smiling.

'I know, but that's still no accuse. And Father…' he trails off, walking towards Father, who was still sitting on his desk still staring at the floor. 'I'm so sorry for what I said. I didn't mean any of that… I was out of line. I'm so sorry! Can you forgive me?' he begs.

Father looks up at Arsenio and smiles ever so slightly. In fact, if you weren't searching his face for any sort of emotion like I was, you wouldn't have even noticed. 'It's alright Arsenio. You, Mia and I are all worried about him. And just so you know, there was nothing anyone could do to get Malik or Potter out of that tournament. But Malik, you are a smart guy, and you've got the help of your siblings here. I'm not worried about you.'

Malik smiled. 'Thanks Father. I'll try my best to stay alive.'

We all knew that was a poor attempt at a joke, but none of us laughed, In fact, the only response he got was the quiet moan that escaped Arsenio's lips.

'Well, on with you three, breakfast started half an hour ago. I'll see you later.' Father said, standing up and opening the door for us, motioning for us to leave.

'Bye Father.' we all chorused, as we left.

We walked down the hall in silence once more. 'Arsenio? Is that why you were acting so distant lately? Because you were worried about Malik?'

Both Malik and Arsenio stopped walking and turned to face me. 'Yeah, I was just worried sick. I mean, Malik is the one person that I really grew up with. We did everything together, from pranking Ara, to pranking Father, to demolishing each other in Call of Duty. I just don't want him to join Mother, when everyone else needs him down here on Earth.' He responded, smiling at the two of us nervously.

'Well that would explain why I felt huge waves of anguish at night. And for one, I demolish YOU in Call of Duty, so I don't want to hear that. And second, love you to Arsenio' Malik smiled, succeeding at making a joke, while saying a meaningful statement as well. He hit his brother on the shoulder and smiled.

'Ok, well, I'll see you guys later.' I laugh, walking into the Great Hall alone.

**'See you later Mia.' **Arsenio smiled.

**'See ya Luv.' **Malik said after.

I take my seat next to Ginny and start talking with her at the Gryffindor table, as I watch my secret brothers take their seat at Durmstrang's table.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot, and my OC's. Everything else belongs to the Ruler of the World, J.K Rowling!**

**A/N: Hey readers. So uh, yeah, what's up with so LITTLE REVIEWS? I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far, but you're not telling me. Can you review and tell me if you are enjoying it? Thanks. **

**Oh! And for those of you that are reading "Restoring What Was" I will try and update it soon. But this is the story I'm focusing on at the moment. **

**Enjoy!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 13

'Hey Ginny.' I say, sitting down and grabbing a piece of toast to munch on.

'Hey Hermione, I didn't see you this morning. Where were you?' she asked, eating her apple with one hand, and holding a Potions notebook in the other.

'Oh… I was…umm…in the library, I needed a-a book on dragons for Care of Magical Creatures.' I lied, hoping she would buy it. _If I'm going to be lying a lot, I've got to learn to be more convincing. _

**'Yeah, we've been better at lying then you've ever been. You're terrible.' **Arsenio said, smirking.

**'We've been lying about our Father for three years.' **Malik added.

**'You weren't allowed to tell anyone about Father?' **I ask.

**'No way. There are a lot of future Death Eaters in that school. So no one can find out.' **Arsenio said.

**'But too bad they already did. So, we had to dive into full-fledged over-lie mode to make sure they believed us.' **Malik said ruefully.

**'Which they have! Even our closest Durmstrang friends believed them. And there's no need to lie to Draco and them. They already know. Duh.' **Arsenio said proudly.

'Hermione!'

I jerk up and bite my tongue. 'Ow!' I can heard Malik and Arsenio burst out laughing inside my head.

'Did you hear me?' Ginny said accusingly, giving me a weird look.

'Uh… no. I didn't. What did you say?' I ask uncertainly.

Ginny sighed. 'Well, I just asked if you were feeling okay. I mean, you're acting a tad different this year. I'm your best friend, so I would know.'

'Oh, I am? How so?' I ask, trying to buy myself more time.

'Well, you burst into tears when Malfoy insulted you on the train, and you stormed out of the Great Hall when that Snape kid was called up. And, you seem to disappear a lot.' Ginny said, listing things that I knew I should have been more careful about.

'Oh, that… yeah… well…' I stammered. Thank Merlin that someone came up to me and tapped me on the shoulder, saving me from answering.

'Hey Mione!' Harry said, taking a seat next to me.

'Oh, hey Harry! What's up?' I ask.

'Nothing much. Ron still won't talk to me. Oh, and we've got DADA in 10 minutes.' Harry informed me, taking a huge bite of his apple.

I froze. 'What? 10 minutes? Well let's go! We're going to be late!' I exclaim, standing up and dragging Harry with me. 'Bye Ginny!'

I don't hear her respond, because I am already out of the Great Hall with Harry trailing behind me.

'What's the rush Hermione? DADA is in 10 minutes! We've got time!' Harry exclaims.

'Yeah Mudblood? What's the rush? Afraid that you won't get your precious seat in the front? But don't worry your little head, no one will go near that seat, you've sat it in way too long to be cleaned.' I hear a long draw from behind.

I turn around sharply and come face to face with Draco, Blaise, Pansy, Theo, and Astoria.

'What's it to you Malfoy?' Harry shouted, irritated.

'Oh, we were on our way to DADA, what about you Pothead?' Blaise sneered.

'He was probably leading the Mudblood off into some broom closet the shag her senseless.' Pansy smirked maliciously.

'Even you deserve better Pothead. I mean pursing the mudblood, that's low, even for you. And stealing the dirt from Weasel, that's even lower. You've got serious issues, besides the fact that you didn't die when the Dark Lord tried to murder you.' Theo drew out, sneering. But hey, I know this great guy who will hel-'

'Sod off. Come on Hermione.' Harry cut him off, grabbing my arm and starts pulling me away. I just nod, with silent tears streaming down my face.

'Oh, did we hurt poor Muddy's feelings? It's too bad her own parents don't care enough about her to keep her where she belongs. In the Muggle Filth world.' Draco said, eyeing me, smirking deviously.

'You are a real JERK Draco Malfoy! So are the rest of you! I can't believe I thought you were my-'I yell, cutting myself off from saying something I would really regret. Don't get me wrong, I really regret calling Draco by his first name, but things could have been a lot worse if I finished my sentence with the word "friends."

'Hermione?' Harry giving me the "what-the-bloody-hell-did-you-just-say" look, and his face had revealing pure shock, as if I had revealed my secret. Draco and everyone else in the hallway for that matter were staring at me the same way too.

'I…err… never mind. Come on Harry. And stay away from me you filthy excuses for a human beings!' I yell, dragging Harry with me, glaring daggers at the Slytherin crew, who were smirking and laughing maliciously behind me.

Once we were out of earshot of Draco and his friends, I dropped Harry's wrist forcefully and stated walking really fast.

'Hey, are you ok?' Harry asked, catching up to me. 'I mean, the last time you cried about something Malfoy said was back in our second year. Why should this year be any different?'

'I don't know. I'm just…just… I worried about you, being one of the youngest people to ever compete in the Twi-wizard tournament. I'm just stressed out.' I lie, trying to wipe my angry tears away.

Harry smiles at me sympathetically. 'Thanks Hermione. I'll be fine. I've got this gift of avoiding death.' He jokes.

I laugh quietly. 'I know you will. Just be careful ok?'

'I will.' He reassures me.

'Come on. We're here.' I say.

'Come in and take a seat!'

Harry and I exchange one look with each other, before I take the seat next to Pavarti, and Harry takes the last seat available, which is next to Ron.

'Welcome. My name is Professor Moody. Now, who can tell me one of the Unforgivable curses?

After about an hour of violently torturing Neville and other innocent creatures , class ended. I decided to catch up to Neville, who sped out of the classroom the second we were dismissed, to make sure he was ok.

I ran up beside him. He was standing with his head against the cold wall, and he was staring blankly outside the window. 'Hey, Neville, are you ok?' I ask gently.

'Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks Hermione. Also, thanks for sticking up for me back there.' He says, turning towards me, giving me a weak smile.

Harry came up beside me, while Ron stormed past the two of us, but Harry ignores him completely. 'Hey Mione. Hey Neville. Are you ok?' he asks.

'Yeah, thanks Harry.' He says, giving him that same weak smile. I was about to say something back, but the loud, heavy footsteps on marble floor cut me off.

'Hey son, you ok?' Professor Moody asks gruffly, coming up behind us.

Neville doesn't say anything this time, only nods slightly. 'Come on, let's have some tea. There's something I want to show you.' Moody says, walking back up the stairs, with the loud heavy echo echoing throughout the tower. Neville's timid ones followed close behind.

Harry turned his attention to me, after staring at Cho as she walked by. 'Come on Hermione. What's your next class?'

'I've got free period.' I answer, walking down the marble stair case with him, our loud footsteps echoing up the tower.

'Oh dang. I've got Herbology.' He sighed.

'Ok, well, I'll see you later.' I say, walking away from him. We're about ten meters away from each other when I call back to him. 'Hey, Harry?' I call down the hallway.

He stops and turns around, with a puzzled look evident on his face. 'Yeah?'

I smile broadly. 'You should really try and ask her out.'

It took a minute or two for his face to finally show understanding, which was covered up by his cheeks tinting red. 'Bye Mione.' He smiles, turning the other way.

I laugh at his reaction, and head down to the library. I walk in silence, enjoying the sweet singing of the birds outside, or, I was until my thoughts were interrupted by the sound of burly, strong footsteps, making their way down the hallway. I don't give it any attention, so I just keep walking till I get to my favorite section in the library, the Historical and Informational section. I scan the rows of books till I find my favorite, "_Hogwarts, a History"_ and take a seat, and begin reading. But I am interrupted moments later by the sound of that burly footstep behind me. I close the book, and I and met with the face of Viktor Krum.

'Hello.' I greet him, with a smile.

'Hello. May I take a seat?' he asks, with a heavy Bulgarian accent, and his bright blue eyes boring into mine.

'Oh, sure.' I say, motioning him to take the seat next to mine.

'Thank you. What is your name?' he asks politely.

'Hermione Granger.' I answer.

'Hermy-io-ne.' he tries, stuttering my name out.

'Her-my-o-ne.' I repeat, stressing the important syllable.

'Hermy-ione.' He tries again, flushing with embarrassment.

'How about you just call me Mione instead. It's easier.' I supply, not wanting him to feel any more embarrassed than he already is.

'Mione.' He repeats, satisfied with himself.

'That's better.' I say, smiling.

'I'm sorry. Your name is just so pretty and graceful; my accent just gets in the way.' He apologizes gracefully.

I blushed, looking down. 'Thank you Viktor.'

'Mione, would you do me the honor of letting me accompany you to the Yule Ball?' he asks suddenly, looking at me.

I just turn to face, my eyes searching for any sign of mockery on his face. But there was none, only sincerity. 'Yes, sure Viktor!' I say excitedly. I get up and hug him.

'Miss. Granger. Follow me. Now.' I hear a frighteningly calm, quiet voice come up from behind me.

I freeze, and look over Viktor's shoulder, and I see the extremely angry face of my Father. I let go of Viktor. 'I'm sorry. I'll see you later.' I walk away from Viktor and walk up to my Father, who was practically running down the hall. I'm running after for another 5 minutes or so before he stops in front of his office, staring at me, furious. 'In.' he utters the one word with so much anger, I'm surprised it didn't explode from the heat. I don't say anything; I just walk in silently, and take a seat on one of the chairs. He slams the door so forcefully; it rattles the floor board and old, crumbly wall.

'What was that?' he whips around to face me, his face conveying his emotion. Anger.

I decided to play stupid, which isn't something I normally do. 'What Father?'

'You were with that guy! Viktor Krum!' He yells, slamming his fist loudly on his desk, making me cringe.

**'Oh sweet Merlin! Help me!' **I yell to the twins, hoping they could help me.

**'Christ woman! What is your deal? Are you trying to make us go mental?' **Arsenio says, irritated.

**'What's wrong anyway?' **Malik asks.

'Are you listening to me?' my Father asks, breaking my conversation with the twins.

'Yeah, I'm fine. But, why are you so mad? I didn't do anything wrong.' I try and reason.

'Didn't do anything wrong? You accepted a date from a guy who's three years older than you!' he says. 'He also goes to Durmstrang, and, I just don't trust him.' He tries to reason with me now.

'So what if he's three years older. I'm friends with Oliver Wood, and he's three years older than me. And honestly, Malik and Arsenio go to Durmstrang! And how can you not trust him? Because he's a famous Quidditch player?' I reply, getting irritated.

'I just don't want you to get hurt Mia.' He whispers in defeat.

My agitation melts away. 'I won't Father. And besides, it's not like I'm going to date him. I don't do long distance relationships.' I say, trying to lighten the mood.

It worked. 'Alright. Just be careful ok?' he asks, hugging me.

'I will Father.' I say, releasing him, and walking out of his office.

**'Hey, what was Father so worked up about?' **Malik asks, once I'm out of the room.

**'Oh, he was just upset that I accepted Viktor's invite to go to the Yule Ball with him.' **I answer, strolling back down to the Gryffindor common room.

**'WHAT?' **They both yell simultaneously.

I stop walking and clutch my throbbing head. **'Ow! What's with you two?' **I scold them, continuing my journey to the common room.

**'You can't go out with Viktor!' **Arsenio yells, only slightly quieter this time.

**'Oh? And why not?' **I ask irritated.

**'He's three years older than you!' **Malik says, upset.

**'Yeah, and he goes to Durmstrang!' **Arsenio exclaimed, getting upset as well.

I sigh loudly. '**Honestly! YOU two go to Durmstrang! What's so wrong with that?' **I ask angrily.

**'He's a bloody player!' **Arsenio yells at me.

**'He literally dated this one girl JUST to get an O on his History of Magic exam! And he dated another girl just to shag her, and there's another where**-'Malik yelled, but I cut him off.

**'So what? If I want to go to the Yule Ball with him it's my business and not yours!' **I exclaim, getting extremely frustrated with the two of them.

I must have hit a nerve on both of them, because I felt a huge wave of disbelief and anger come from the two of them. **'Well excuse us! We were just trying to keep you safe.' **Arsenio said, his voice thick with disbelief and anger.

**'You and your heart. But clearly neither you nor your heart wants to listen to us at the moment. '**Malik said, abruptly pulling out, Arsenio right behind him.

I feel a wave of regret wash over me, but I continue miserably down the hall. I am lost in thought until I run into someone, and we both end on the floor. 'I am so sorr- Malfoy?' I say angrily.

'Nice to see you too Hermione.' Draco joked, brushing himself off, and helping me up.

'Oh, sorry. It was kinda impulse.' I sneer.

He looks at me for a long time, then finally asks, 'What's wrong?'

I give him a weird look, caught off guard, and forgetting to be mad. 'What? Nothing's wrong.' I say, looking away, starting down the hall again.

'Yeah sure, and you're stupid. Come on, what's wrong Hermione?' he asks gently.

I sigh, and walk over to the nearest bench, motioning for him to follow. First off, I'm upset with you and your friends.' I begin, avoiding eye contact.

He pulls my chin up, so I had to look at him. 'I'm sorry Mione. But you know we have to act that way. Do you want people to become suspicious.'

I sigh, knowing he was right. 'I know. It's just, I'm just upset. My brothers and I got into a fight. They got mad at me for accepting Viktor's invitation to go to the Yule Ball with him.' I say, staring back at the floor.

'You WHAT?' he yells, standing up to look down on me, his whole attitude changing.

I look up at him curiously. 'I what?' I ask.

'You accepted that arse's invitation? Why?' he yells.

'Oh not you too!' I exclaim exasperatedly. 'Look! I can do what I want, and YOU of all people can't tell me what to do! For Merlin's Sake! It's not like he's going to drag me into a broom closet and torture me!' I shout back at him, angry.

Draco's face hardens considerably. 'Well excuse me for looking out for your well-being!' Draco says, indifferently, that cold look he normally wears creeping back onto him face. 'All I'm saying is that you should watch yourself. That guy is an arrogant jerk. Just don't come crying to me when he dumps you on your arse for some Veela.' He spats, storming down the corridor.

I watch his retreating figure, feeling regret and anger surge through me. _'Ah the three of them will get over it. ARGH! Why do guys have to be so frustrating and overprotective?' _I think, halting in my thoughts. _'Oh, they were just being over protective…' _I sigh, depressed. I turn the other way and mope into the common room.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot and my OC's. Also, I don't own anything that you recognize from "How to Train Your Dragon" either. **

**A/N: Where are my reviewers? I miss reviews. They're not coming in as much as I would hope. So, PLEASE review! I REALLY want to know if you're enjoying this story. Sorry if I'm not going along with the story as much as some would hope… **

**Oh, and big shout out to ****Breezers2000, ****for reminding me about this, and I promise I will never discontinue this story. I solemnly swear. **

**So enjoy!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 14

I mope into the common room, walking silently up to my dorm. Harry notices me and calls me over. 'Hey Mione! Come on over!' he beckons me over, patting the spot on the couch next to him. I sigh, walking over to him and plopping on the couch. "Hey Harry.'

'Hey Mione, what's wrong?' he asks, looking up from his homework. Ron walks down the stairs, but stops to listen. 'It's nothing. 'I respond quietly.

'Hermione, you've been my best friend for three years. You don't think I can tell when something is wrong? Come on, what's wrong?'

'It's, just, Fath- I mean, I've been mocked for accepting Viktor's Yule Ball invitation.' I sigh, hoping he won't get mad at me.

'Hermione,' Harry begins, but he is interrupted by the furious yell of Ron Weasley. 'You WHAT?' he yells, storming up to me.

I start crying again. 'Ron, please, stop.'

'No! You accepted his invitation? How could you? He's the enemy!' he shouts.

That spikes my nerve. 'He's the ENEMY? The whole point of the tournament is for a Universal Corporation, to make friends!'

'Looks like he wants to be WAY more than friends.' Ron scoffs, starting to walk towards the portrait door.

'Well, then maybe you should have asked me before someone else did, and NOT as a last resort!' I yell at his retreating figure. Once he's out the door, I fall back onto the couch, crying into my hands.

'Shh…it's okay Hermione. You know Ron. He's…over-protective. He'll get over it.' He says, putting his arm around me, stroking my shoulder.

'Well, what do you think?' I whisper, fearing his answer.

'Hermione, I'm not exactly a fan of him…' he trails off, because he feels me tense up. But he quickly picks up before I start yelling at him. 'But, I know you're a smart girl, I mean, there must be something in that guy you like.' He jokes, succeeding in making me laugh. 'But, if he ends up hurting you, I will hex his sorry arse back to Bulgaria faster than you can say Quidditch star.' He laughs.

I feel better after. 'Thanks Harry.' I say, standing up and hugging him.

'No problem. You're my best friend. And right now, we need each other more than ever.' He reasons.

I bury my face into his shoulder, but he nudges me slightly. 'Come on Mione, it's time for the feast.'

'Alright.' I say, walking with him out the door, heading down to the feast.

I woke up the next morning feeling worse than I did the day before. I sit up, and look at my clock, which reads 7:30. I slowly get dressed, and head downstairs to the Great Hall. The hall is empty, with the exception of a couple 1st year hufflepuffs, so I decided to try and contact the twins.

'**Hey, guys? You there?' **I silently ask, pleading that they will talk to me. I felt an extreme sense of guilt, and loneliness when I was met with the eerie silence echoing in my head. I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice Ron walk up to me and sit next to me.

'Mione? Hermione? HERMIONE!' Ron said, waving his hand in front of my unblinking eyes.

I jump in shock, and choke on my pumpkin juice. 'Oh, hi Ron. What's up?' I ask, recovering.

Ron glances away looking slightly embarrassed. 'Uh, I need you to pass something along for me.'

I give him a weird look. 'Pass what along?' I pause for a moment, before asking angrily. 'Why should I? You were the one yelling at me for accepting Viktor's invitation yesterday!' I yell, turning to him, looking at him angrily.

'I'm sorry about that Hermione; you know how I can be. I'm overprotective of the people I love. And, I need you to tell Harry that the first task involves dragons.' He says quietly.

I give him a long blank stare, my eyes filled with disbelief, but forgivingly. 'What?' I say, curiously.

He turns and faces me. 'The first task involves dragons. My brother Charlie told me. He's the one that sent the dragons. Tell him he needs to go see Hagrid after hours today.' He says.

'Then why don't YOU tell him Ron?' I ask, suddenly ticked off again.

'Because Hermione! I'm just… just…' Ron trails off.

'Jealous?' I supply, as if the answer were obvious.

Ron looked me in the eye, but I didn't find rage there. 'Yeah, maybe I am. Jealous and nervous.'

My glaze softened. 'I knew it.'

'So you'll tell him? And if you do, don't say that I directly said it, say I, say I heard it from someone ok?' he asked eagerly.

'Yeah… I suppose. But will you at least talk to him?' I ask.

Ron opens his mouth to answer, but Harry walks up to me and sits on the other side of Ron. Ron gives Harry a cold glare and stalks out of the Great Hall.

'Well, I guess I'm not going to talk to him.' Harry says lightly, grabbing an apple and taking a huge bite from it.

Remembering Ron's request, I ask, 'Harry? Can you take a walk with me? I've got to talk to about something.'

'Sure. Can I take my apple?' he asks, smiling.

'Yes Harry, come on.' I laugh, getting up, with Harry right behind me. We walked together in a comfortable silence while Harry was munching on his apple till we got outside.

'Alright, we're outside, what did you want to tell me?' he asks, throwing his apple core into the bush.

'Uh, Ron told me that Pavarti told him that Padma heard that Seamus over heard that Hagrid wants to see you, after school, tonight.' remembering that Ron didn't want me to pass it on directly.

Harry gives me a weird, confused look. 'Repeat?'

I sigh loudly, and begin to repeat. 'Ron told me, that Pavarti told him that…oh please don't make repeat it. Point is, Hagrid needs to see you tonight.'

'Alright. Come on, lets head back to the castle. We've got Potions in 15 minutes.' He says, beckoning for me to follow him back to the castle. We were walking back to the main door when we were interrupted by the loud laughing coming from behind.

'Hey look, Cedric, it's Potter!' Justin yelled, laughing.

'Hey, Potter stinks! ' his friend laughs, slapping Justin on the shoulder, pointing at Harry.

I give a Harry a sympathetic glance, but he ignores it and walks straight on to Cedric.

'Cedric, I need to talk to you.' Harry says, walking away, beckoning for the two of us to follow.

Cedric and I walk over to Harry, and turn to him. I start to saw something but Cedric swiftly cuts me off. 'Harry, I thought I might as well say, I'm not wearing those badges, I mean, I think there're rubbish.'

'it's fine. I just thought I might as well tell you, about the first task. It's dragons. The first task has something to do with dragons.' He spills quietly, making sure no one over hears him.

Cedric gives him a look of surprise and shock. 'You're, you're serious? How do you know?' he asks curiously.

'It doesn't matter how I know, point is, the task involves dragons.' Harry says curtly.

'Alright… thanks…Harry. I owe you one.' Cedric says, walking back to his jeering group of friends.

As soon as Cedric is out of ear shot, I turn to Harry. 'Why did you do that?' I ask curiously.

Harry shrugged. ' I don't know. I suppose us Hogwarts students have to watch out for each other. _Whoa, I suppose I should tell Malik about this, it would really help him. _I think to myself. 'Very Gryffindor of you. Come on, let's head back.' I say, grabbing his wrist and playfully dragging him with me. He laughs and follows me, that is, until we stop when we are interrupted by the long, drawn out sneer of someone behind us.

'Hey Potter, off to the practice for the tournament are you?'

Harry and I whip around, and we are met with the pale, sneering faces of the Slytherin, with their Prince; Draco, sitting on the tree above the rest.

'Sod off Malfoy!' Harry spats, glaring at Malfoy, before he starts stalking towards Malfoy. I quickly follow, just in case Harry decides to do something stupid. Malfoy jumped out of the tree, and strode over to Harry, with a confident smirk on his face.

'My Father and have this bet you see. I think you won't last 10 minutes in this tournament.' He pauses, as the Slytherins around him laugh and jeer at Harry. I put my hand on his shoulder, just in case. Malfoy continues when the laughter dies down. 'He disagrees. He thinks you won't last five!'

Harry charges forward. 'I don't give a damn about what your Father thinks Malfoy! He's vile and cruel, and you're just pathetic.' Harry shouts, and stalks away, with me quickly at his heels. That must of ticked Malfoy off, because he started muttering things under his breath, and pulled out his wand. My wand was instantly in striking position, but someone beat me to it. The next thing I know, Moody is storming out of nowhere and transformed Malfoy into a bright, albino ferret. He was bouncing him up and down, yelling furiously at him. To my left, Harry left my side, and clutching his own, propping himself up against the wall in order to keep from falling over. But the fun was quickly brought to a stop when Professor McGonagall came rushing out of the hallway and onto the scene.

'Professor, Professor! What, what are you doing?' she asks curiously once she was standing next to Moody.

'Teaching.' He answers gruffly, waving his wand up and down, causing Malfoy-ferret to be viciously thrown up and down.

But nothing gets past McGonagall, because she caught on quickly. 'Is, is that a student?' she asks disbelief thickly laced in her stern voice.

'Technically it's a ferret.' He smartly responds, showing no sign of stopping.

McGonagall pulls out her own wand, and transformed Malfoy back to his original pale self, only his hair and robes are extremely askew. Once he realized that he was back to normal, he became extremely skittish. 'Wa- wait till my father hears about this!' he yells, retreating back to the castle with Theo, Blaise, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle quickly on his tail. No pun intended.

'Come on Harry.' I say, pulling Harry off the wall and dragging him with me, which was a pretty hard task considering the fact that he was still clutching his side, doubled over with laughter.

'Th-that w-was so, so, FUNNY!' he laughs hysterically.

I stop dragging him, and laugh with him. 'Yeah, I know. Come on, what class do you have next?'

He pulls himself together enough to answer my question. 'Oh, I've got History of Magic. Fun way to spend my last day before the first task.' He jokes.

'I'll talk to you after class, before you go to Hagrid's, I promise.' I say, my emotions welling up inside me.

'You can come with me, if you want.' He offers, smiling slightly, knowing that is what I wanted him to ask.

'Oh yes! I'll meet you outside the common room, at 8!' I exclaim, quickly kissing him on the cheek, and then rush to class. I probably ran over a good dozen students before I made it to the potions classroom. I made it to my seat, which was next to Pavarti, just before my Father strode into the classroom, and slamming the door behind him.

'Alright, today we will be learning about potions that cure burns, due tomorrow's event. Turn to page 493, and begin taking notes. You have till the end of class, begin. Pavarti and I open our books and begin working, that is, until something hits lightly on the arm. I look around to see who threw it, but no one was looking my way. I open it, it reads,

Hermione,

Want to get together before the 1st task, maybe, at 6? I already got everyone else to come, so, how about it?

-Theo

I turn and scout out Theo in the class, and I am met with his big blue eyes, pleading with my brown ones. He motions for me to answer, so I write back,

Theo,

Yes, I'm coming. Meet you at 6.

-Hermione

I charm it to fly back to Theo, and it lands gently on his hand. He opens it, and turns to smile at me. I smile back, before I turn back to Pavarti, and the rest of the boring class period.

'Hand in your potions, and get out of my sight.' My father barks out to the class. Pavarti hands in our potion and walks out of the class room. I hold back and wait for Theo.

'Hey, ready to leave?' he asks, smiling and walking up to me, picking up my bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

'Yeah, you sure everyone else is coming?' I asked, walking out with him.

'Positive. Let's go, the normal place under the willow tree.' He beams at me.

We walk together, talking about all sorts of things, school, the tournament, until we met the others under the willow tree.

'Hey Hermione, Theo! Come on! We've got a lot to talk about.' Pansy said, smiling and beckoning us over.

We smile back at them, and take our usual spot, my on the rock under the willow tree, and Theo next to the lake, pulling out his snitch and playing with it.

'Malik, there's something I've got to tell you.' I say, putting my hand on my brother's shoulder.

'Oh yeah? And what would that be?' he asks, indifferently. Clearly he hasn't forgiven me yet.

'The task, it involves dragons.' I tell him. He forgets to be ticked off, and turns to me, looking at me as if I just told him I were a dragon myself. The air around us carried a sense of shocked silence, in fact, you would probably be able to hear a nonverbal spell.

'What?' Malik asked, his voiced laced with disbelief.

'Dragons… oh, please, Malik, be careful.' I say, my voice thick with emotion.

'Dragons?' Arsenio squeaked a very un-manly squeak.

Malik slumped down against the tree, dropping his head into his hands. 'Bloody brilliant, I'm dead. I'm as good as dead.

'Hey, you'll do fine… I'm actually going to see the dragons right now, at 8.' I say.

'You are? How?' Astoria asks, going to sit next to Malik, comforting him, along with everyone else.

'Well, I'm actually not supposed to go, I'm sneaking off with Harry. Our groundskeeper is going to show us. I'll tell you guys what they are.' I say. Everyone else was motioning to go comfort Malik, everyone but Draco. 'Bliemy, what's up with you Draco?' I ask, curious.

Draco lifts his head up, looking really agitated. 'I'm just ticked off with that stupid professor.' He says, fiddling with Theo's snitch.

I burst out laughing, either due to the whole ferret situation, or trying to diffuse the tension. But whatever I did that for, it paid off. Everyone started laughing, all except for Draco, who was just trying really hard not to laugh.

'I'm really sorry Draco, but that was really funny!' Theo jokes, slinging his arm over my shoulder, and laying back against the tree, laughing.

'And the best part was when of all things, you turned into an albino ferret!' Pansy laughs, smirking at Draco.

'You are in no position to laugh Hermione! Miss- I'm-going-to-the-ball-with-Viktor-Krum!' He turns on me, his glance hardening.

The guys in the group stare at me, with either anger; like Draco, Theo, and the twins, or with surprise, which was how Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle looked at me. Theo removed his arm from my shoulder to stare at me. The girls on the other hand, squealed with delight.

'Oh Hermione! Really?' Pansy squeals, grinning at me.

'Oh that's fantastic Hermione! Oh we should REALLY go dress shopping!' Astoria says happily.

'You WHAT?' Theo yells at me.

I sigh loudly. 'Oh not you too! First my Father, then the twins, the Draco, then Ron, now YOU? Why?' I ask.

'Well maybe I was going to ask you!' Theo sighs, looking away. 'Look, I've got to go, I've got a lot of History of Magic homework I have to finish. See you at the tournament tonight.' He sighs quietly, getting up and running back to castle.

I was still in shock, but Draco broke the silence. 'That arse! When I get my hands on him…' I don't hear much after that, because he quickly gets up and follows Theo up to the castle, followed by Crabbe, and Goyle.

'I better go make sure he won't do anything he will regret later. See you later Hermione, Malik, Arsenio. Coming Pansy, Astoria?' Blaise says, standing up, offering his hand to Pansy and Astoria.

'Yeah, coming. See you later Mione.' Pansy says, taking Blaise's hand.

'Bye Mione.' Astoria says, getting up as well. The three of them walk back to the castle, leaving me and my brothers alone by the lake.

'Well, I have to go meet Harry. I promise I will tell you about the dragons.' I say, getting up.

'Alright…' Malik says, getting up as well, hugging me. I bury my head into the crook of his shoulder. 'Please be careful.' I mumble into his shoulder.

'What was that?' he asks, laughing, letting go of me.

I lift my head out of his shoulder. 'I said, please be careful.' I say, tears slowly pouring down my face.

'I will I will. Geez, you have nothing to worry about. I've got the two of you to help me.' He says, smiling.

'Yeah, we wouldn't let him get hurt. He would kill us if he got hurt.' Arsenio jokes, coming up and hugging me. I hug him back, laughing.

'Alright, I'll tell you about it later. So, do you forgive me?' I ask, scanning their faces for any sign of forgiveness. I am rewarded when both of their faces melt into a look of deep forgiveness. 'Yeah, I suppose we overreacted…' Arsenio trails off.

'We just don't want you to get hurt, that arse is a player. Just promise us one thing?' Malik asks, grabbing my hand and smiling nervously.

'After this whole thing is done, you will NEVER speak to that arse again.' He says, smiling madly, with Arsenio mirroring the exact same look that Malik was wearing.

'Alright Alright, I promise.' I laugh, letting go of Malik's hand, and walk away from them.

I run through the empty hallway, my footsteps echoing throughout the stone hall, until I came across the Gryffindor portrait, where Harry was waiting for me outside.

'Mione, there you are! Where were you?' Harry asks, grabbing his invisibility cloak and walking up to me, with a pondering look on his face.

'Oh…I was….in the library.' I stutter, hoping that my library reputation would make him buy that.

But the look on his face told me that he didn't buy it. 'Mione, the library is on the other side of the castle. You came running from the opposite side; you came running from the east side. The library is on the west.'

I immediately regret my choice of words, so I make something else up, hoping he would buy that instead. 'Oh, yeah, well, I dropped by the Great Hall, I wanted a banana.' I bluff, avoiding eye contact with him.

'Ok, ready to go?' he asks, dropping the previous matter. I sigh with relief and nod. Harry smiles, and throws the cloak over the two of us. We walk in silence down the cold hallway, out the main door, and outside to Hagrid's hut. Harry sticks his hand out of the cloak to knock on his door. Giant footsteps come from inside the hut, coming closer to us, then Hagrid opens the door.

'-Arry? Is that you?' he asks into the cold night air.

Harry walks out from under the cloak, leaving me inside it. 'Yeah, it's me.'

'Come on Harry, and put the cloak back on.' He says gruffly, and walking away, motioning for Harry to follow. Harry gets back under the cloak and walks back up to Hagrid, dragging me with him, through the trees in the Forbidden Forest.

'Harry, where is he taking us?' I whisper to him.

'I don't kno-' Harry cuts himself off, taking a look at Hagrid. 'Hagrid, is that a flower?' he asks, taking his head out of the cloak to look at Hagrid. Hagrid pats his flower down and continued to walk as if he hadn't heard anything. 'Hagrid, did you comb you hair?' Harry asks, incredulously.

'I might -ave. I'm, meeting someone.' He answered gruffly, changing his path to the left, avoid a giant oak tree.

Before Harry has time to ask who, Hagrid walks up to the giant head mistress of Beauxbatons, Madam Maxime.

'Oh -Agrid, you –ame' she purred, reaching her hand out to Hagrid.

'Are these, the dragons?' she whispered.

I don't hear Hagrid respond. My eyes are entranced by the 5 vicious dragons, roaring and breathing fire, sitting behind the rows of trees before me.

'Oh, Harry…' I whisper… studying the each dragon.

'Do you know what kind they are?'

I study each dragon individually, but it's hard to tell what is what between all the scorching fire, think smoke, and restless workers trying to calm the dragons. The first one I notice, the one on the far left, was spitting out fire onto one of the workers, I noticed that it had a short snout, _Oh! I remember reading about those! Thank __**you **__Hagrid!_

'Harry! The one on the far left is a Swedish Short-Snout.' I whisper harshly. He doesn't say anything, so I continue to study the dragons. The next one on the right, a sluggish colored green dragon, was violently shaking his cage, fighting to get free.

'Harry, the next one is a Common Welsh Green.' I whisper again. He doesn't say anything again, because it seems as if he's still mesmerized by the sight of the dragons. I continue to study the dragons, picking up with the middle dragon. The maroon colored dragon shooting out bright red fireballs at the workers around it.

'The one in the middle is a Chinese Fireball.' I know he isn't going to respond, so move onto the one next to the Fireball. Once my eyes met with the dragon, I let out a small gasp of surprise.

'Hermione? What is it?' Harry asks, breaking out of his trance, looking at me with concern.

'Harry, you see the second dragon on the right? That's a Hungarian Horntail. It's one of the fiercest dragons ever to roam the earth!' I whisper, becoming really upset. 'Wait, Harry, what were you staring at?' I ask him.

'Oh, I was trying to figure out what was in the last cage on the right, if there is even anything in there.' He responds, resuming his gaze on the dark cage on the very end of the darkened forest. My gaze falls on the last cage as well. But this cage wasn't like the others. It wasn't thrashing around, fire wasn't flying out of the cage, and workers weren't restlessly trying to calm whatever was in it. I was just about to declare that nothing was in there, one of the workers walked in front of the cage. I didn't think much about, that is until a bright purple plasma beam shot out of the cage, and the next thing I knew, the worker was gone. The identification of the dragon inside the metal cage became all too clear at that moment; I knew the instant I saw that man disappear.

'Harry!' I whisper, distressed. 'That's…that's…a, Night fury.'

He gives me a weird look. 'A what?'

'A Night fury. Very little is actually known about them, and there aren't many that populate and are very rare. That's because they are very rare, and even if you do happen to come across one, no one really lives to tell about them. Maybe only about 5 exist on earth. They are the deadliest dragons that exist, using their extreme speed and accuracy to their advantage. They only come out at night when no one can see them. And their plasma is the worst. It's a mix of fire, electricity and plasma, creating the deadliest their deadliest weapon. They also have razor sharp teeth, and piercing green eyes, that entrance you into a "spell," so to speak. But I must say, they are relatively calm dragons. Just never provoke one, because they never miss.' I recite, remembering every word of my textbook.

'You know, I don't understand why I can't just you use to do my homework instead of a stupid textbook.' Harry jokes.

'Harry! You're missing the point! And besides, you kinda already do that!' I exclaim, slapping him across the shoulder. 'You have a one in five chance of getting the most deadly dragon alive!' _Oh Merlin, Malik has the same chance! _'Harry, when are leaving?' I ask, anxious to get back to my dorm.

'Why? Cause Hagrid's lovey dovey faces getting you sick?' he jokes, smirking.

'No, why would-' I cut myself off, looking at Hagrid, who was making kissy faces at Madam Maxime. I felt the bile rise in my throat as I try to restrain myself from gagging. 'Yes, it is, now can we leave please?' I beg.

'Sure sure.' He smirks, lifting his head out of the cloak. 'Hagrid, we're, I'm leaving.' He doesn't wait for Hagrid to respond, he just ducks his head back under and begins to walk. We walk in silence, trying to soak up everything we just saw. We came up into the castle and made our way to the common room.

'Balderdash.' I mumble to the Fat Lady, who was snoring loudly. The portrait slung open, and we rush inside.

'I'm going to bed Harry. Goodnight.' I say quickly, and rush up to my dorm before he says anything back. I quietly open the door, and I am met with a dark room, and three sleeping girls.

'Silenco.' I mutter. I quickly change into my pajamas, and grab a piece of parchment. But before I start writing, I remembered that I would tell the twins.

**'Malik, Arsenio, is it ok if I just send you two a letter about what I saw? I'm really not keen on re-telling it right now.' **I ask tiredly.

**'….sure. Can I go back to sleep?' **Arsenio asks, sleep evident in his voice.

I looked at my clock, and felt guilt wash over me; the clock read 12:58. **'Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you… just, when you get it, I need you to read it with the other Slytherins as well. Ok?' **I apologized.

**'Alright, we'll read it in the Slytherin common room tomorrow. Good night.' **Malik says, pulling out, and immediately falling back asleep.

**'Don't you mean Good morning? Ah whatever, good night Mione.' **Arsenio jokes, pulling out as well.

I laugh quietly at Arsenio's lame attempt at a joke, and begin writing.

Dear Malik, Arsenio, Draco, Blaise, Theo, Pansy, Astoria, Crabbe, and Goyle,

I saw the dragons with Harry. They are terrifying! I suppose I should tell you about each one that I saw.

Alright, the first dragon I saw was the Swedish Short-Snout. They are easily distracted, so battling that one would be pretty easy.

The next one I saw was the Common Welsh Green. That one is alright, not the hardest you could have. They are definitely not the easiest to distract either, but you will manage, if you happen to be against this one.

The next one was the Chinese Fireball. This one is definitely a challenge. They are extremely smart, and their accuracy is pretty keen, you would definitely need smarts to beat this dragon.

The 4th one is the Hungarian Horntail. This dragon is defiantly a fierce one. They have deadly spikes covering its body, so avoid contact with this one.

The last one is the Night Fury. Since I highly doubt that any of you have heard of this one, so I'm going to describe this one to you guys. This is the deadliest one of the 5. Reason being, is 1. The tournament is at night, and it is impossible to spot a Night Fury at night. (Hence the name) 2. They've got razor sharp teeth, and piercing green eyes. One look into those eyes and you're as good as dead. Why? They have properties like a Basilisk, only it doesn't kill or petrify you. They make you lose your train of thought, and they hypnotize you into a trance. 3. Even though they are normally calm, provoking one is probably the last thing you will ever do. 4. They never miss. Ever. They shoot while hot fire plasma, that can disintegrate a human. (I saw with my own eyes, it was terrible) This is the one I'm worried about. I need to talk to you guys, before the 1st task. I'll talk to you later.

-Mione

I wrap up the letter, and set it down under my pillow, just in case. I put out the dying flame on my nightstand and closed my tired eyes, as sleep immediately follows.

**A/N: Holy Merlin! This was a long chapter! 12 pages, 5,069 words! Geez! I might have a chapter up tomorrow or the day after, but no guarantees. Peace out suckas! (Who remembers CDC? :) **


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I don't own any characters created by J.K. Rowling. Also! This is something I should have been writing in my disclaimers, but I haven't, but better late than never right? Alright, **_**DeceptiveFates **_**owns the idea for this story. I do own my plot that isn't stolen from her. Please visit my page to see a full list of disclaimers. Oh, and please go read the real version of this story. This is just my version. She's my HERO! **

**A/N: I mean what I said before, go read **_**DeceptiveFates **_**story, "To Be a Snape." I'm Sirius, go! And she didn't steal anything from me; it was actually the other way around. But being the totally cool person she is; she is totally cool with it! But I highly encourage it, no, I command it! :) **

_**And furthermore, **__**I need beta readers!**__** My current ones refuse to respond or read anything. (That would explain all the mistakes, sorry) So if you are interested, review! But, I've got to figure out how this whole thing works. Well anyway, review saying you want to, and I suppose I will tell you what I have in mind. Thanks! **_

**Anyway, enjoy! [: **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 15

My eyes reluctantly open to the dim light fading through the window in my dorm. I sit up quietly and glance around the room, noticing that no one else was awake, but my next conscious thought was something much darker, the 1st task is later, this evening. I quietly get out of bed, and get dressed in plain muggle cloths, because classes are postponed till after the 1st task. With one last glance at my appearance, I head down the stairs, and silently out the portrait hole. I stride quietly down the hallway, my footsteps echoing almost silently.

**'Arsenio? Are you up?' **I ask my brother silently, hoping not to wake my other brother, Malik, up.

**'Yeah, look at me, bring up at 7:47. What's up?' **he asks me curiously.

**'I was just heading to the Great Hall to grab an apple before I head to the library. Want to come?' **I ask him, walking into the empty Great Hall.

**'How about I join you, grab an apple, beckon the rest of you, and ditch the library for the willow tree next to the lake.' **He suggests jokingly. I can practically picture the smirk spreading across his handsome face. But sadly, he knows that is exactly the way to get me to cave, humor.

**'Ah fine. But don't wake Malik yet. He needs his sleep if he wants to stay alive tonight. And beckon? Who says beckon anymore?' **I say, hoping that came across as a joke, but that's not the way Arsenio received it.

**'He WILL stay alive… he has to…' **He trails off, his voice becoming suddenly serious, ignoring my attempt at humor.

**'Sorry Senio. That was my lame attempt at a joke.' **I say.

I feel confusion flood through me, coming from my brother. **'Senio? What**, **what the hell was that?' **he asks, smirking.

**'Oh, um, did I say that aloud, silently in my mind? Sorry, I've been trying to think of a nickname for you guys. You know how you call me Mione or Mia? Well I was just trying to think of something for you. But, both of your names are near impossible to work with.' **I tell him. I hear him laugh at me good-humoredly.

**'Well alright. I'll be down in a couple of minutes, with everyone else.' **Arsenio says, pulling out.

I sigh, in deep thought, trying to think of some sort of nickname for my brothers, taking a huge bite on my apple, savoring its sweet taste.

'Hey Mione.'

'Hey Arsei- Ginny?' I stutter, turning around to face a very confused looking Ginny.

She sits next to me, giving me a what-did-you-just-call-me look. 'Hey, what did you call me?' she asks, taking a ripe banana from the pile, peeling it, and giving me a curious but accusing look.

'Oh… I... umm…called you Ginny! W-what else wo-would I call you?' I stutter, cursing myself for stuttering. I hope she would believe my lie through my stutter.

'It sounded as if you were about to call me Arsenio, the twin brother of the 5th champion. The really hot one.' She swoons, spacing out.

I gag on my apple, coughing it back up. 'What?' I ask incredulously.

'Arsenio Snape? That guy with an unfortunate last name. Thank Merlin that he isn't the son of Snape. Eugh, I would never date him if that were the case! It's a shame though if he is, he looks like a really awesome guy. ' she says, oblivious to the fact that she three offensive things to me. 'What's wrong with Fath-Snape?' I mentally slap myself, again.

'What is up with you? Are you ok? Because It sounded as if you were about to call SNAPE, father.' Ginny says, giving me a look of disbelief.

I open my mouth to utter yet another lie, someone comes to my rescue.

'Um, are you Hermione Granger?'

I turn around to see Arsenio looking at me, with a very convincing questioning glance. 'Uh, yeah. Why?' I ask him, catching on to what he's trying to do, sorta.

'Oh, uh, Professor Snape wanted to see you in his office. He says it's about that potion yesterday. He needs you to make more.' He lies swiftly.

'Oh, ok. Thank you.' I say, getting up and walking away. Arsenio leaves directly after me, fearing being alone with Ginny. I guess he heard what she said to me.

**'Nice lie.' **I compliment him, heading towards the willow instead.

**'I try. Meet us by the lake ok? Everyone else is already there, except Malik, who is still sound asleep.' **He informs me.

**'Ok, and Father doesn't need to see me right?' **I ask, heading towards the lake.

**'Right, but he does want to talk to the three of us before the task. See you in a second.' **He says, pulling out.

I walk silently down the hallway, until I reach the opening to the grounds, where I spot the willow tree just barely visible in the distance. I quickly glance over my shoulder to make sure no one is following me, and run the rest of the way to the tree, my hair flying behind me. 'Hey guys!' I exclaim happily, walking up to them.

All their faces turned and lit up, all except for Theo and Draco, who looked the other way in a failed attempt to ignore me, and each other.

'Draco? Theo? What's up with you two?' I ask, sitting in my normal spot next to Theo, on the solid granite rock.

'They're still pretty ticked off at each other.' Blaise answered, smirking at the two of them.

I give him a questioning glance. 'Why?'

Pansy sighs loudly, smiling. 'Well duh! It's because of what you told them yesterday. They are both mad at you for accepting Viktor's invitation, and mad at each other because they both wanted to ask you.' She fills in for me, smiling madly.

'Ah come on you guys! You know we wouldn't have been able to go together anyway right?' I tell them, asking for their attention.

They both look at me curiously, forgetting to look at me angrily. 'What do you mean?' they ask simultaneously. They both exchange an angry glance at each other, then return their attention to me. 'I mean, it would be really suspicious if people saw ME, muggleborn Granger with the Princes of Slytherin. Just saying.' I answer, checking their faces for understanding. I felt Theo's body next to me relax, slumping down against the tree, flinging his arm around me once more. Draco didn't seem satisfied with what Theo did, but he lets it go, leaning down against the rock. 'So are you ok with it?' I ask them quietly.

I hear them both sigh loudly, but Draco speaks first. 'Yes, I suppose so. But mark my words, that bastard puts one toe out of line with you, I'm hexing his sorry arse into hopeless oblivion.' He says defiantly, smirking at me goodheartedly.

'I'm with Draco. He better watch himself, cause he going to be answering to a lot of angry people if he messes up.' Theo adds, smirking with Draco. Everyone laughs, relieved that the tension is defused for the time being. Once we quiet down, Blaise speaks up again.

'Hey, what am I, the treasurer of Slytherin?' Blaise jokes, mock anger and disbelief in his voice.

'No Blaise, you can be a prince too.' Astoria purrs jokingly.

We are all thrown into another fit of laughter in the moment, but the scene develops that tense atmosphere again when Goyle asks, 'Hey, Hermione? Did you want to tell us more about the letter?' he asks gruffly, pulling the note out of his pocket.

'Well, depends, did all of you read it yet?' I ask, looking at their faces.

'I haven't.' Pansy said, walking over to Goyle, taking the letter from his meaty hands. Astoria, Theo, Blaise, and Draco walk over to Pansy, reading over her shoulder.

'So, just Crabbe and Goyle read it? Wow guys.' I say amused. The rest of us waited patiently while the others read the letter, their eyes widening in horror with every word they read. After about a minute or two, they all resume their pervious spots, looking worriedly at me.

'Really? Those are the dragons in the task?' Blaise asked seriously. 'Well, it was nice knowing him.' He says on a lighter note, trying to defuse the tension, but failed in doing so. In reality, it only made things worse.

'He's gonna live through it!' Arsenio yells, standing up, over Blaise looking furiously at him.

'Arsenio, he was only joking.' I saying, getting up, putting a gentle, comforting hand on his shoulder. He gives me a sideward glance, sighs, then returns to his seat on the grass, letting his head fall to his hands.

'Merlin, this is serious… what are we going to do?' Pansy asks.

'Well, he's a smart guy, and he will get through this.' Draco speaks up, looking

I was about to speak up and say that Arsenio and I can help him, but I guess Arsenio read my mind and shook his head, silently cutting me off from what I was about to say.

**'Do they not know about it?' **I ask them silently.

**'No, and we don't plan on them knowing for a while. It's a cool secret.' **Arsenio responds.

'Um, so what about these dragons? They seem harsh.' Astoria says, yanking the two of us out of our thoughts.

'Well what about them. They're just dragons.' Goyle says gruffly.

Theo sighs loudly. 'Honestly Goyle. If you were any slower, you'd be going backwards. These are murderers with wings! From what it sounds like, the Night Fury could incinerate you without lifting a claw. Malik might have to FIGHT one of these things.'

'Well Potter won't have a problem. He's got that gift of being able to avoid death.' Blaise puts in lightheartedly.

'Well Malik has a two in five chance of getting the more deadly dragons, the Hungarian Horntail and the Night Fury, but the odds are in his favor, but just barely.

'I'm going to go check on him, to make sure he's alright. Anyone want to come? Except you Mione, sorry.' Arsenio says apologetically.

'I'll go.' Draco says, standing up. The others second that, and stand up with him.

'Bye Mione!' Draco calls back to me, smiling.

'See ya Sis.' Arsenio smirks, before turning around. Everyone else choruses their goodbyes, before following them up to the castle.

I stand up as well, and make my way to the castle, up to the Gryffindor common room. I stride quickly down the hallway, but someone comes up and interrupts me.

'Hey Hermione! Mind if I join you?'

I turn around to Ron walking up to me. 'Not at all Ron.' I say, halting so he can catch up. 'So where have you been?' I ask him once he catches up to me.

'Oh, I've been with Seamus and the twins.' I cringe slightly at the sound of the word twins. 'They want him to be the person in charge of helping them make explosive products.' He says lightheartedly, laughing.

I start laughing to, 'Oh come on! Well at least he is embracing his talent.' I joke. We walk in comfortable silence until something emerges in my mind. 'Hey Ron? You know how so little is known about the Night Fury?' I ask him.

'Yeah, what about it?' he asks.

'Then how come your brother trains one? How was he able to capture one?' I ask seriously.

'Oh, well, I was wondering about that too, so I wrote to him asking. He responded saying that he was chosen to go out into the vast unknown and capture one to train it. He says he was the chosen one to go out there and learn more about them.' He answers.

'Whoa, so he's going to be editing the Dragon Manuel? How cool! Do you think he could send me the original?' I ask eagerly. Ron looks at me with an amused look on his face, and immediately blush and turn away. 'Sorry, I didn't mean for my crazy nerd-self to randomly appear like that.' I say quietly.

Ron laughs, 'Aw come on Hermione! You know me better than that. I love you just the way you are. Nerd and Beautiful Hermione, both the same person.' He says, smiling. Before I can say anything to thank him, he adds, 'and yes, I think I can get my hands on the book by Christmas.'

'Oh Thank you Ron!' I exclaim, giving him a big hug. He hesitates for a bit, before hugging me back. 'Thank you for what you said before too.' I whisper in his ear. It's his turn to blush, as he turns away.

'So, are you ok with me going to the Yule Ball with Viktor?' I ask gently. I hear him sigh before he answers. 'Yes, I am. You're a smart girl Hermione. So, there must be some reason you said yes to him. But I swear, if he hurts you, violates you in anyway, or says something disrespectful to you, his arse will be flying back to Bulgaria before you can say 'bye.'' He says, smiling at me.

I laugh at him and the irony that the Twins, Harry, Draco, Theo, and him all said pretty much the same thing. We walk up to the Gryffindor common room once again lapsed in a comfortable silence. 'So are you sure you don't want to talk to Harry with me? He really needs his best friend right now.' I say, hoping he gives into me.

'No, I, I just don't think I'm ready. You should have heard the things I said to him. He probably doesn't want to talk to me.' He sighs, disappointed with himself.

'He really does miss you.' I inform him.

'I promise I will talk to him when I forgive myself.' He says, giving me a weak smile. I sigh in defeat, going up to give him a hug. 'Bye Ron. See you at the task.'

'Alright. I'll be in the Great Hall if you need me.' And with that, he turns away, walking out of sight from the Gryffindor common room.

'Courage and Bravery.' I tell the Fat Lady, who swings open for me. I walk in to find Harry sitting on the window sill, staring outside the window with a blank stare on his face.

'Well, I hope you aren't thinking about jumping.' I joke, yanking Harry out of his thoughts.

'Oh, hey Hermione. What took you so long? I didn't know you were capable to be late.' He jokes, jumping down from the windowsill.

'Oh, I, was w-with some of my o-other friends, by the lake.' I stutter, turning my face in shame.

'Hm, I guess you learn something new every day.' He muses.

My head jerks up. 'W-what do you mean by that?' I ask anxiously. He gives me a weird look. 'I was going to say that apparently, you stutter when you get nervous, which really doesn't make any sense.' He informs me.

I sigh in relief, sitting on the couch. Harry walks over, sitting next to me. 'Hey, is everything ok Mione?' he asks gently.

'I wish, no, nothing Harry.' I feebly attempt at trying to brush the subject off.

'Hermione, give me credit here. I probably know you better than anyone else in the school. You don't think I can tell when something is wrong?'

'I really wish I could tell you… wait, uh, it's just, I'm stressed about you still. I read all about the dragons, they are terrifying.' I say weakly.

'I'll be fine Hermione.' He says, hugging me. I bury my head in the crook of his neck. 'What about the other kid, uh, Malik? He's the same age as us. Aren't you worried about him?' he asks.

_Oh of course I'm worried about my twin brother! What kind of dumb question is that? _I want to scream to him, but of course that you confuse him to no end, so I settle with something different, hopefully lightening the mood. 'Yeah, well, he doesn't have your gift of avoiding death.' I say weakly, sitting back down on the couch, with a small laugh.

'See? My gift will help me. Plus, Mad-eye is helping me with some of my training. It's weird, why do older guys seem to take an interest in me so much?' he asks, oblivious to the wrongness of what he just said. I double over laughing, clutching my side, tears pouring down my face from pure enjoyment. Harry just stares at me, oblivious to why I'm laughing so hard. His face scrunches up in concentration, before realization dawns on his face. It's evident on his face that he is trying really hard not to laugh, but I suppose my laughter is contagious, and soon he is doubled over laughing as well. But our laughing fit was brought to an end when someone walks through the common room door.

'Um, are you Hermione Granger?'

Harry and I sober up quickly and turn to see who is at the door, and we find Arsenio standing at the door of the common room, acting confused.

I stand up and walk towards him. 'Yeah? Why?' I ask him.

'Your professor wanted to see you, um… Snape I believe.' He stutters, making it sound very believable.

'Oh, alright. I'll try and talk to you before the task Harry, bye.' I say, walking around Arsenio and out the portrait. I wait outside the door until Arsenio comes out. He steps out a moment later looking quite proud of himself.

'You know, you are the most convincing actor I've ever met in my life.' I muse, walking with his to my father's office.

'I know. I learned from Ara.' He tells me.

'Ara! Oh my Merlin! I haven't written to her all summer! Does she know about what Malik is about to go through? Is she alright? Have you heard from her?' I rant, guilty about not writing to my sister.

'Chill. Malik, Father and I keep in touch with her. So she knows all about it. Actually, I think that she's visiting. She somehow convinced her headmaster to let her stay here, but she did have to admit that we are her brothers. She said nothing about you though.' He told me, as we rounded the corner, and entered my father's office.

'Mione!' Malik exclaims, jumping off the table and coming to hug me.

'Hey, Hey Malik!' I laugh, and hug him back. 'Sorry we didn't wake you this morning to come and talk with us, but I felt as if you needed as much sleep as you could get.' I told him, feeling slightly guilty by the look on his face. But the look was quickly replaced with a serious expression when my father spoke up.

'Malik? How are you feeling?' he asks worriedly.

He sighs loudly, taking his spot back on the table with an amused expression on his face. 'I feel fine Father. I haven't been incinerated by any dragon yet.' He jokes, but his joke goes the wrong way with the three of us. Arsenio is about to yell at his twin for saying such a thing, but someone entering through the door cuts him off.

'Nor will you ever be incinerated little brother.'

'Ara!' the three of us exclaims happily, as we all ran up to her and tackled her.

'G-guys, c-can't breathe.' She breaths out, trying to pry her younger siblings off of her.

We all release our grips on her, and walk her back to the tables. My Father shuts the door and mutters some charms to prevent anyone else from being able to enter, or listen from the outside.

'Sorry, we're just happy to see our sister that's all.' Malik says innocently.

'Mhm, yeah, ok.' She responds amused. But she turns and looks at me. 'Hey little sis, no letter from you all year! What's up?' she asks, saddened.

'I'm sorry! It's just, I've been stressed with my best friends fighting, my best friend being thrown into the most dangerous wizard event, my brother being thrown into the same game, and I have to keep this huge secret from my closest friends!' I spill out, my emotions welling up inside me.

'It's ok Mia, I'm not upset. I'm just sad that my only sister hasn't written to me all year.' She tells me, giving me my own personal hug.

'On to more serious matters. Malik, are you ready for this?' my Father asks him.

'Oh hell no. Who could ever be ready for this? I'm going to go out there and fight a godforsaken dragon!' he says.

'Well, we don't have much time. There is just one thing I need to tell you. Don't pick the Night Fury. They are saving that battle for last, and it is impossible to see a Night Fury at night.' He informs him.

'Thank you, for those wonderful words of encouragement.' He says sarcastically.

Before anyone can say anything else, Dumbledore's voice thunders over the castle. 'Everyone needs to report to the stadium at once. Champions, report the champion's tent at once. See You All There.' There a quite echo over the school, before the hallways fall silent once more. I look hopelessly at Malik, but he doesn't return the glance. He looks petrified.

I run up to him and give him a hug, engulfing him in my small arms. He hugs me, and breaks down. 'Malik, you'll be ok, I promise.' I cry quietly. Arsenio has tears pouring down his cheeks as he walks over to us and hugs Malik as well. Ara too has tears flowing silently down her face, as she hugs her brother goodbye. Malik pulls out, his eyes red and puffy, gives us all one last look before walking away.

I look hopelessly at Arsenio, Ara, and my Father. 'I better go. I promised I would talk to Harry before the task.' I give everyone their hugs goodbye, only no one says anything, and after I leave, they all follow, walking to the stadium by the lake, on a mountain. I run the other way towards the tent, having no idea where it is. I just saw Fleur at the end of the hallway. I follow her, panting with each step. I finally reach the tent, but wait outside. I creep up to one of the walls of the tent, and listen in. I hear someone breathing on the other side, and I recognize it to be Harry. 'Harry? Is that you?' I whisper harshly.

'Yeah, it's me.' Harry responds quietly.

'How are you doing?' I ask him worriedly.

'Hermione, I'm about to be thrown into arena with a vicious dragon, how do you think I'm doing?' he jokes, but I take it the wrong way.

'Harry, the key is to concentrate, and Harry, please be careful.' But before he has the chance to respond, I shove the rough fabric walls aside and fling myself into his arms. But before I have the chance to pull away, I bright flash comes out of nowhere.

'Oh, young love!' I hear a silky venomous voice come out of the light.' I blink my eyes a couple of times so I can adjust, and I am met with the horrible sight of Rita Skeeter.

'Hey, this tent is for champions, and friends.' Viktor said. The other champions, including my brother, came out of their rooms dressed in their Twiwaizard robes. I also noticed Harry was wearing his, with a bright red 5 on the back.

'Oh, I was, just leaving.' She says, nodding to her quick quote quill before leaving. I let go of Harry, but attach myself to his arm. Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch emerge in the tent.

'Alright champions, gather around.' Mr. Crouch beckons the champions over. They all form a semicircle around Dumbledore.

'Now, the object of the task is simple, - Ms. Granger? What are you doing here?' he asks me.

'Oh, I was, just leaving.' I stutter. I take one last desperate look at harry, and one hopeless look at Malik before leaving the tent, my best friend, and my brother.

**MALIK'S POV**

I see my sister leave the tent, and it shatters my heart in half seeing her look like that. The brims of her eyes were lined with unshed tears. I watch her retreating figure before Mr. Crouch continues.

'Now, all you have to do is get a golden egg that the dragon has been trained to protect. You will all pick your dragons by reaching in this bag. Ladies first.' I watch him as he brings the bag over to the only female competitor and opens the bag to let her reach. She hesitantly reaches in, and yanks her hand back out, making a fist. She slowly opens it, and reveals a small green dragon, spitting out fire onto her hand.

'The Common Green Welsh.' Mr. Crouch tells her, as he moves onto the next champion. She looks at her headmaster worriedly, as her headmaster puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. Mr. Crouch opens the bag for the other Hogwarts champion and opens it for him. He reaches inside and pulls out another small dragon with a squished in snout. 'Swedish Short Snout.' Mr. Crouch tells him.

He then moves onto Krum, probably the one guy I loathe just a little less than Voldemort himself. He reaches in and pulls out a maroon colored dragon. I don't hear the name of it, because both of my siblings are furiously pounding in my head, trying to get through to me, but the own sound of my speeding, nervous heart tunes them all out.

Mr. Crouch walks over to Harry and opens the bag, when a deep sense of realization knocks the wind out of me. _Oh Merlin, the other dragons have already been chosen! I have a guarantee of getting a dragon that could rip my face off with his face! _My heart rate rapidly speeds up as a watch Potter pull his out of the bag, and he opens his hand to reveal a Hungarian Horntail.

I'm shaking in my shoes now, as my stomach drops further and further. Mr. Crouch is standing in front of me, opening the bag for me to pick, but it's hopeless, I already know what it is. I reach inside and pick up my dragon, and lift it back up for everyone to see. When I open it, my heart, stomach, confidence, and bravery drop into hopeless oblivion. I stare into the little dragon's intense green eyes, which stare back up at me with heated hatred.

It's a Night Fury.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: Have you all done what I asked of you? Have you read "To Be a Snape?" Well you should, J.K Rowling owns all characters found in the Harry Potter series, and the rest belongs to me. (:**

**A/N: What? What is this? No beta readers? Come on! And I'm really sorry, but I would prefer someone with an account on here so I can contact you my fanfiction email, but I am ok with someone who doesn't have one. So please, I would love for some of you to become beta readers. **

**So, enjoy future beta readers!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 16

**MALIK'S POV**

I stared down at the little dragon, whose claws held the fate of my life in its claw.

'The Night Fury, good luck kid.' Mr. Crouch tells me. I give him a look of disbelief before he gives us time to get ready, as he announces that the task is about to begin. I sulk over to my bed, still holding the fake night fury in my hand, as it spits fire at me, struggling to get away. I didn't notice that Potter walked over to me and sat next to me.

'You think you're going to be ok? My best friend told me all about those vicious monsters.' He said, gesturing to the spitting dragon I was holding by the tail.

'I could ask the same for you.' I joke, smiling.

'Well, my dragon can miss. I don't think it's the nature of that demon to miss.' He jokes back. _Hm, Potter isn't as bad as Draco says he is… _'Yeah, well this is what I say to the demon that's going to kill me. I drop the dragon in my hand, and squeeze it, hard. We both get the satisfaction of its squealing. I release my grip, and forcefully throw it to the ground.

'Would you like to do the honors?' I ask him.

'It's your dragon, I think you can.' He responds, smirking. I smirk back at him, and raise my foot, catching one last glimpse at the dragon before I forcefully bring my foot down, smashing the fake dragon into the ground. I pivot my foot around, making sure that the dragon wasn't still 'alive.'

'That felt good.' I tell him, sitting back down. 'Why don't you do that with yours?' I ask him.

'Oh, I kinda gave it back to Crouch. But I REALLY regret it now.' He says ruefully. But something interrupts him. 'Malik?' he asks.

'Yeah?' I ask.

'I know this might seem really weird to you, but it you need it, you can use my Firebolt.' He says.

I am about to thank him, but Mr. Crouch's voice drowns out everything else. 'Welcome everyone! Let's get started! We are starting with our first task! Opening for is Ms. Fleur Delacour!'

I turn around to just in time to see Fleur walk out of the tent. 'Let the Games begin.'

'Let the Games begin.' Harry echoes.

**HERMIOME'S POV**

I try and focus on Viktor, I really do, but my mind is muddled with too much. Fleur managed to make it out alive by trying to enchant it asleep, and Cedric also made it out alive by transfiguring a rock into a dog.

I am still attempting to get through to my brother, but he seems to be blocking everyone out right now.

**'Arsenio? Have you gotten through to Malik yet?' **I ask my other brother, the one whose mind is always open.

**'No, he won't let me in! I thought we were supposed to help him!' **he yells to me, obviously distressed.

'Hermione?'

I'm jerked out of my thoughts, and my conversation with my brother, and turn to Ron, who is on edge and he too is obviously nervous.

'Yeah?' I ask him, my voice distant.

'Viktor got the egg.' He informs me.

'Yeah, that's good.' I say, once again distant.

Ron sighs loudly. 'Yeah, that means Harry is up next.'

That jerks me out of my distant attitude. 'Oh Merlin! Thanks Ron!' I scoot up to the edge of the rail, and lean over, waiting for Harry to appear out of the tunnel.

**MALIK'S POV**

'Ladies and gentlemen, our next champion, let's welcome Mr. Harry Potter!'

I am standing next to Harry, at the entrance of the tunnel. 'Hey, good luck man.' I say to him.

'Back at you.' He says, smirking. He steps out of my reach, and walks through the tunnel. Once he is out of sight, I silently walk back to my room, through the empty, deserted tent.

**'Hermione? Arsenio? Are you guys there?' **I ask my siblings, just wanting to hear their voices right now.

**'Malik? Why haven't you opened up before? We've been trying to talk to you for the past two hours!' **my brother yells at me.

**'Hey now, no need to get me more stressed before I go out there, fighting for my life.' **I joke, hoping it lightens my brother up, but I should have known better, because this is a really sensitive subject for him. **'Sorry, didn't mean for it to come out like that. Wait, Mione? Are you there?' **I try and ask my sister.

**'Missed her. She's screaming at Potter for him to use his wand. He is her best friend you know.' **He tells me.

**'I know, I know. Wait, can you tell me what time it is?' **I ask him, hoping it is not late, because late means dark.

**'Um, well, the sun is starting to set, but Potter just flew out of sight, and the dragon is following him. But, I think it's going to get dark real soon.' **Arsenio tells me.

**'Malik? Can you hear me?' **My sister joins, sounding frantic.

**'How could I not be able to?' **I say, amused.

**'You were blocking us out!' **She screeches at me. I cringe physically before responding. **'Christ woman! For your information, I was talking with Harry!' **I tell her calmly. That shuts her up.

**'You, you were talking with Harry?' **she asks, quietly.

**'Yeah, I suppose he's not as bad as Draco told me about.' **I admit. I feel her abruptly pull out, along with Arsenio. I try asking them what's happening, but I can guess for myself. Harry is back.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I abruptly pull out of my conversation with my brothers, and immediately get mesmerized by Harry, flying back around the stadium, still trying to lose the dragon. I feel Ron tense up next to me, his eyes trained up at the sky. I return my eyes to the sky, following Harry, speeding through the sky on his Firebolt, with the dragon flying right behind him. He circles the stadium once, then takes off again, flying towards the castle.

'Oh, I wish he would hurry up and get that egg.' I mummer.

'Trust me, I know the feeling.' Ron says.

'Don't worry Mione, remember what Harry said to all of us? He's got that amazing gift of being able to avoid death at the best times.' Seamus says jokingly. He doesn't seem worried about Harry, and I shouldn't be either. I mean, he's going to be fine, right? Before I can answer my own question, Harry comes zooming out of the setting sun, without the dragon on his tail. He dives down and grabs the egg. He jumps off the broom, and holds the egg in triumph.

'YES! YES! GREAT JOB HARRY!' I yell, trying to get him to hear me. But, due to the overwhelming roar of the crowd, I give up. Harry disappears back into the tunnel. As the audience quiets down, Mr. Crouch's voice booms over the rest of us. 'Alright ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome our last champion, Malik Snape.'

**MALIK'S POV**

'Let's welcome our last champion, Malik Snape!' I hear death calling, and it doesn't sound good. I turn and give Harry, who is just passing by, a hopeless glance. He tries to reassure me with an understanding smile, but I turn away before I turn and look at the dim light at the end of the tunnel, lit by only the lamps at the end, which makes my courage sink even further. If the tunnel has to be lit by some lamps, then that means it dark out.

I walk through the damp tunnel, and enter through the other side. My eyes take time to adjust to the lack of light. The stadium was eerily quiet. I step out onto the rock terrain, with my wand in hand. I look around for the sight of the Night Fury, but find nothing. And the only way I could see the egg was by the light that was hovering over it.

**'MALIK! TO YOUR RIGHT!'** My sister screeches. My head jerks around to my right just in time to see a bright violet flame flaming towards me, I jump out of the way and dart behind a rock.

_'I know this might seem really weird to you, but it you need it, you can use my Firebolt.' _

'Accio Harry's Firebolt!' I scream, my voice cracking in desperation at the starless night, but nothing happens. Sweat beading on my brow as the dragon comes closer and closer, getting frustrated that it can't find me. Shivering with fear and cold, I cower behind the rock until something comes speeding out of nowhere and smacks me in the face. 'Bloody Hell!' I scream in terror, thinking the thing that hit me was the dragon, but when I turn around, I see Harry's Firebolt, glimmering n the dim light. I sigh in heavy relief and jump on, darting away from the dragon. The element of surprise only gives me a split of a second to get away from the dragon before it takes to the sky as well, shooting bright, white hot flames at me.

_Please, guide me out of here! _I pray to the Firebolt, hoping it can hear me, and then all of a sudden, the Firebolt jerked upwards, flying towards the castle. I take one glance behind me, seeing the furious jet black dragon burn away at his chain before following me. Feeling the cool smooth wood beneath my fingers, I guide the Firebolt around the building, and jerk to a stop midair in the sky to see if the dragon was following. Bad move. The top of my hair is singeing as I duck out of the way of the purple missile. I swerve around the tip of the castle and speed in the other direction, hoping to get back to the egg before my entire body is burned up in smoke.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I haven't seen him in over 10 minutes, where could he be?

**'Arsenio? Have you been able to get through to him?' **I ask him desperately.

**'No, I haven't! I think I'm about to hyperventilate. He won't open up to us.' **He responds, just as desperate and worried-stricken as I sounded.

**'Oh Merlin, what if he's dead? Or what if he's falling into the hopeless depth of the crevice near the castle? Or what if he got burned alive? Or what if he got EATEN alive, or what if he got lost and can't find his way back, or what if he's hightailing it out of here so he won't have to face the dragon, or what if he got hurt and is lying somewhere , or what if VOLDEMORT found him? Or what if…-'I** rush out, going into shock, depression, and anxiety all at once.

**'HERMIONE! Shut UP!' **Arsenio cuts me off, furious. **'Each outcome you said got more and more unlikely as you said them! The more you said, the stupider they got! He's alive, or we would have felt something!' **He mentally shouts at me. He must have felt my disbelief and unimaginable depression flood from me to him because he added, **'He's alive, I can guarantee. He's going to be ok.' **He adds in a much more reassuring, sweet brotherly voice.

I can't help it anymore, I burst out crying, silently praying for him to come back. The tears are pouring down my face in an endless river of hope, depression, anxiety, panic, and worry.

'Hermione? What's wrong?' Ron asks, concern etched across his freckled face.

'I-it's nothing. I, I'm ju-just s-so wo-orried abou-t th-e guy ri-right now.' I stammer out through my tears. I was going to add something, but my throat is squeezed, and I can't breathe, so I settle with shaking my head back and forth, crying.

'Hermione, he's going to be ok.' Ron reassures me awkwardly, having no real clue as to why I really want this champion to return back to the stadium, alive.

I keep my head sunken down in my hands, as the tears brimmed with sorrow continue to fall down my cheek from my red eyes.

**'Hermione, I think our emotions are keeping Malik from returning.' **Arsenio says in a hollow voice.

**'Why hasn't he come back?' **

**MALIK'S POV**

I swerve yet another tree, trying to buy myself some time. It's pitch black, and I'm trying to save myself from a jet black murderer chasing me in the sky, fantastic.

'Shit!' I curse at myself, letting the dragon get to close, singeing the edges of my robes. I swerve behind a giant rock, on top of a hill, and hover in midair, trying to gather my thoughts together. _Wait! That's what siblings are for! _

**'Mione? Arsenio? Are you there?' **I plead in mind.

**'Malik! You're alive!' **Hermione responds, her voice sounding overly gleeful.

**'Why haven't you opened up before now? It's been 45 minutes of torture, not hearing a WORD from you!' **Arsenio scolds me. I roll my eyes, and take off again, fearing that if I stay to long in one place, that demon of a monster will find me again.

**'That's not important! I need to know how to get this demon off my tail so I can get that damn egg and get out of the sky!' **I say impatiently, as I scower the grounds for another hiding spot.

**'Sorry, so, um, I have no idea how to get rid of a demon with wings, so, ask Hermione.' **Arsenio tells me. _Great advice bro. I'll have to thank you in person when and if I ever see you again. _I think to myself sarcastically.

_'_**Alright, how to get rid of a Night Fury, well the best way to get it off you tail is to go for the wings and the tail. If it can't fly, it can't get away, or follow you. So I advise burning the wings.' **Hermione informs me, with information that will actually help me.

**'But I thought these dragons belong to someone.' **I question, confused.

**'WHO CARES? Just kill the bloody thing and get the stupid egg!' **Arsenio supplies impatiently.

**'No Arsenio. And yes, these dragons belong to Charlie Weasley, and he will heal them all when they return to Romania. So go all out.' **Hermione tells me. I pull out, with a confident smirk on my face, and turn around abruptly, and speed towards the stadium. Simple, give the audience a good show, then they have to score you well. I check over my shoulder to make sure the dragon is following me, and the only way I can tell is by the bright, luminescent light reflecting off the emerald eyes of the dragon behind. _Prepare to taste the Karma. _I think menacingly to myself.

I fly over the stadium, as if I'm flying my victory lap, and stop to hover above the egg. I wait for the hate filled emerald eyes to spot me, which they do. The Night Fury shoots a bright violet missile at me. I only smirk and yell 'Reflecto!' and the missile goes flying in the other direction, hitting the dragon straight on its left wing. It roars in pain and anger, then aims another one at me. I decide to have some fun, so I pretend to fall, but I catch myself by my left hand, which is gripping the broom, and my right hand is waving my wand, as I practice nonverbal spells. _Reflecto. _The missile goes straight for the dragon's left wing again, burning the hole bigger. The dragon roars in pure agony, and falls to the ground, hitting it with a loud smash. I smirk, fling myself back onto the broom, and gracefully and arrogantly ride back down , to where I am facing the golden egg. I hold Harry's broom in one hand, and grab the egg in the other. I tuck it under my arm, and strode off to the tunnel. But the last thing I saw was the light at the end of the tunnel before something burning, like a thousand white hot knives scrape across my back.

I woke up with the lights way to bright for my liking, and indistinct voices flooding my ears. I let out a slight moan to let them know I'm awake.

'Malik!' Suddenly someone with extremely bushy hair is hugging me very, very tightly. 'Ow, easy on the back.' I murmur.

'Oh, Malik, I am so sorry!' she desperately cries.

My eyes finally adjust to the lighting, and I figure out that it's my sister who nearly crushed my back. 'Hermione?' I ask weakly.

'Malik, I am so sorry!' she continues so cry. I look around for my brother but he just smiles amusedly and says to me, **'She's been like that ever since she found out you were burned.' **

** '**That's because it's all my fault! I should have warned him! Now he has to live with that hideous scar for the rest of his life!' she yells, breaking down once more. _Scar? What scar? _I weakly get out of bed, despite Hermione and the healer's attempts to get me to stay put. I conjure up a mirror, and take off my shirt. I turn around to see a giant flame mark stretched across my back.

'Holy Merlin, that's… that's…' I trail off.

'It's horrible, I know.' Hermione supplies weakly, but that's not the word I was looking for.

'It's bloody AWSOME!' I exclaim excitedly. 'It's no fun unless you get a scar out of it. And here's mine!'

The door opens behind us, and Draco, Theo, Blaise, Pansy, Astoria, Crabbe, and Goyle step through the door, and the guys walk in with an amused look on their faces.

'Dude, if you're trying to turn us gay it's not working. But I must admit, that is a really toned six pack.' Draco says, walking over to us, amused.

'Aw stuff it.' I say, amused, throwing my hospital pillow at him.

'Alright alright. So how you feeling?' Draco asks, but I'm not entirely sure he's talking to me anymore. He is looking at Hermione, concerned.

'Yeah, I'm fine.' She says, sounding better. I see her cringe, then exclaim 'Oh my god! I haven't even thought about Harry!' she makes a rush moment towards the door, but Draco stops her. 'No need Mione, look.' He says, pointing towards the door.

Hermione and I look towards the door, to find Harry leaning against the door, with a smirk on his face. 'Aw thanks best friend. Glad to know that you're concerned for me.' Hermione pushes past Draco and runs into Harry's arms, ticking both Theo and Draco off. Harry gently pushes Hermione off of him, leading her back into the hospital wing. Harry takes one look at me and smirks again. 'Dude, there are wonderful things called shirts, yeah, they cover that up.' He said, gesturing to my six pack. I laugh, then throw my shirt back on, but I notice that the atmosphere changed when Harry stepped in. I turned and noticed that the others stepped back, towards the other side of the hospital , shooting glares at Harry. He seems to notice it too, so he cuts in smoothly. 'Well, I can see I'm not wanted here, so I just came to check to see if you were ok. You took quiet a shot to the back.' He says.

'Yeah, I'm fine. But my back stings like hell, but I'll live. And you aren't the only one with a cool scar anymore. Sorry bud.' I smirk at him.

'Ok, uh, real question, is my Firebolt ok?' he smirks, but I can tell by the mischievous glint in his eye that he's joking.

'Oh sorry mate, the demon burned it.' I joke back, laughing. He laughs too, hits my shoulder, then walks out, taking one last look over his shoulder to make sure he made my back sting a little.

I rub the stinging part of my back with my hand, and I go and lay back down on my bed, and that is the first time I notice my friends faces. Hermione looks surprised and overjoyed, Arsenio is just smirking, but the others are a different story. The seven of them have looks of pure disbelief and disgust on their faces.

'Since when are you friends with Potter?' Theo spats, disgusted.

I give them a really surprised look. 'What?' I try, way to innocently.

'You're friends with the Boy-who-wouldn't-die! Well, sure he banished lord moldy butt, but-'

'But nothing Draco! Can you name ONE reason why you don't like him?' I say, defending my new friend.

'Well, he…. He….' Draco trails off, trying to think of something legit.

'He thinks he's so awesome because he's got a damn scar on his face, strutting around here like he owns the place.' Theo cuts in.

'He does not! If he had it his way, he would be hidden in the shadows where no one knows him!' Hermione cuts in, outraged. She glared at Draco and Theo with a look of pure hatred. She wheeled around on the others who stood in the back. 'And what do _you _guys think of Harry?' she spat at them, glaring dagger at them, almost daring them to speak against Harry.

'Actually, I've never had anything against Harry.' Pansy says, shrugging it aside. Astoria nods in agreement, smiling.

'Neither have I.' Blaise says, smirking. 'It's just those two.' He nods, gesturing to Draco and Theo.

I notice her posture drop in confusion. 'Really? Then why do you guys always insult him in the hallway?' she asks curiously.

'Why? It's because the princes of Slytherin hold the power. I don't want to sleep with the snakes, contrary to popular belief.' Blaise informs her, and me as well. I actually thought they all hated him.

'But, why do those two hate him?' Hermione asked my unvoiced question.

Blaise burst out laughing, clutching his side, with tears falling down his face. Astoria and Pansy joined him, laughing hysterically. Crabbe and Goyle just smirked in the back.

'What? Why are you laughing?' Hermione voiced, once again voicing my unspoken question.

'Hermione! How blind can you be?' Pansy asked, laughing still.

Before anyone could say anything, Theo pulled out his wand and yelled 'Silenco!' Muting the three of them before they could say anything.

'Theo? What is it? We're all friends here.' Arsenio said, supporting his friend.

Theo took one look at Arsenio, and one look at Hermione, before he sighed in defeat. 'Well, I don't know about Draco, but I don't like Harry because…. because…. I'vealwaysthoughtthatyouand Harryweregoingout.' He said the last bit really fast, pointing at Hermione, turning away, embarrassed.

'Repeat?' Hermione asked, smiling. I saw my sister walk up to Theo and put her hand delicately on his shoulder, encouraging him to go on.

Theo took one look in her eyes, and gave in almost immediately. 'I, I thought that you and Harry were going out. You are always together, inseparable really. I was jealous, and I was pretty convinced that you didn't know I existed until now.' He said, with a slight smile on his face, his shaggy black hair hanging in black eyes.

Hermione smiled and hugged Theo, which seemed to have surprised him, but he hugged her back nonetheless. 'What about you Draco?' my sister asked over the shoulder of a not so secret lover.

Draco turned and looked at Hermione with a defeated sort of look on his face. 'Because I feel as if he's stealing you away from me.' He says with a hollow sort of voice. Hermione gives him a look of sympathy, before letting go of Theo and going to hug Draco. Draco immediately took her into his arms and hugged her tightly. Pansy and Astoria 'awed' in the back.

**'You know, for a book worm, she's got a LOT of admires.' **I tell my brother, amused.

**'I know… I hate it, I mean, we just got her back this year, and now these guys are stealing her again. Unfair.' **Arsenio responds back, just as amused.

'Hey, they are not.' Hermione said, turning to my brother and I smiling, forgetting to respond mentally. Everyone else in the room gave my sister a weird look. 'Hermione, no one said anything.' Draco informed the obvious.

Before Hermione could either save herself or further embarrassed herself, someone walked into the room.

'Oh, Malik, I was supposed to… Hermione? What are you still doing here?' Harry asked, walking back in the hospital wing with a suspicious look on his face.

'Oh! Harry! I was, I was talking with Malik… I wanted to know how his experiences went with his dragon.' She lied, only fumbling once.

Harry's look didn't falter for a moment, then a moment later he let it go. 'Sorry, I was supposed to give this to you the first time I came in here. I just didn't want your friends hexing me.' Harry jokes, handing Malik his shiny golden egg. 'Oh, and you're tied with me and Krum.' He informs him.

I take a look at my egg, and notice a knob at the top, my hand just begins to reach for it before Harry stops me. 'No, you REALLY don't want to open that.' Harry says, plugging his ears.

'Why not?' I ask. 'How bad can it be?' I reach for the knob, and Hermione immediately covers her ears as well. The others, Arsenio, Draco, Theo, Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria cover their ears, while Crabbe and Goyle just head off to the Great Hall. I shrug them off, and open the knob.

The egg began to screech like some banshee being run over by a centaur. I immediately threw the egg down and covered my bleeding ears. Not really, but I felt as if they could burst at any moment.

**'Close that damn egg up will you?' **My brother yelled at me, but I could barely hear him. I kneel down and close the egg, halting the screeching. Everyone looks at me relieved, but Harry looks at me with a wide smirk on his face. 'Now what did I tell you?' he says triumphantly.

'Ah shut it.' I tell him, smirking back. We are all standing there in awkward silence, before a brilliant idea pops in my mind. 'Hey, Harry, do you want to hang out with us? You too Hermione.' I say, including my sister to diffuse any suspicion Harry might have.

'Um, sure… but that depends, do _they _want me around?' he asked, shocked, gesturing to the Slytherins standing awkwardly in the back.

'Probably not, but they should get a real chance to get to know you.' I smile, looking back at the Slytherins, who didn't look too pleased with me.

'Sure, why not. Hermione? Do you want to?' Harry answers hesitantly, only wanting to please his new friend.

**'Don't act to eager.' **I warn my sister, looking at her with a fake curious look.

'Oh, sure, Harry. I will if you will.' She says, confidently.

I sighed in relief, glad to know that she said it right. 'Well, great. Want to meet us under the willow tree by the lake, maybe around one?' I ask them, knowing Hermione was going to show up regardless if Harry did or not.

'Sure. See you there, I suppose. Come on Hermione, the Great Hall awaits.' Harry said, gesturing for my sister to follow. She looks at me, with a grin slowly spreading across her face before turning back to Harry.

'I guess we have to go huh?' Blaise asks, finally speaking up.

'Yes, you will. Come on, he is just like you guys, only he's a Gryffindor.' I tell them, walking out of the hospital wing with my brother behind me. We stop and turn, waiting for the others to follow.

'Ok, I guess we're coming.' Pansy says, getting up, while the other Slytherins follow her. We walk together down the hallway, putting on our normal arrogant smirk striding down the hallway.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I don't own any characters that are found in the Harry Potter series, and please see my page for a list of disclaimers from another author. Thanks. **

**A/N: I need beta readers. Please? I'm so sorry! because this chapter should have been out a week ago, but my bloody flash drive deleted my file, so I have to start again. So please? Beta readers? Are you out there? I need beta readers. **_**Accio Beta Readers. **_**And how about some reviews? I'm not going to lie, reviews are trickling in, and I LOVE reviews, so if you can, review and tell me what you think! I'm all eyes! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 17

**HERMIONE'S POV**

'Come ON Harry! Can we leave now?' I ask Harry impatiently.

Harry swallows his bite of apple. 'Sure, what time is it?' he asks me, taking another bite of his crunchy apple.

I check my watch, which reads 12:45. 'It's 12:45 Harry.' I inform him.

'Alright, let's go meet my certain doom.' He jokes, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, offering me a hand up. I take his hand, and we walk out the Great Hall, but I fall when I collide with another person. 'Oh, I'm sorr- Ron?' I ask, looking up and seeing Ron standing up as well.

'Hello Hermione. How are you?' He greets me, ignoring Harry completely.

'We w-were j-just heading o-ff to m-meet some f-friends b-by the lake.' I stutter, nervous.

Ron looks at me suspiciously. 'Ok, have fun then.' He says, eyeing me and Harry, then walking past us. I grab Harry's arm, and begin pulling him off to the lake. 'Well, someone's in a rush today.' He muses, taking another bite of his apple as I drag him across the dusty stone floor of the old castle.

'Harry, do you have your egg?' I ask him, letting go of his robes so he can walk normally again.

He thinks about it for a while, then answers, 'Yeah, it's in my bag.' He tells me.

'Good, maybe you and Malik can figure out a way to figure out what it's saying.' I tell him, as we walk through the arch, and outside to the grounds. We walk carefully down the steep hill, until we reach the opening to the lake. We walk in comfortable silence till we get to the willow tree. I notice everyone's faces turn up to see who is walking over to them. Blaise, Pansy, Malik, Arsenio, and Astoria have a smile on their face, whereas Draco and Theo seem to be ignoring Harry all together. I take my seat on the hard granite rock, while Harry goes over and sits next to Blaise's rock, on the ground.

'Hey Hermione, Harry.' Pansy greets us, with a smile on her face.

'Hey Pansy.' I greet back, smiling. Harry just nods her way, unsure of what to say back. The group lapses into an uncomfortable, awkward silence. Malik looked around at the group once before deciding to try and break the tension.

'Hey, Harry? You got any ideas on how we could figure out what the screaming banshee is saying?' he asks him, holding his own egg in his hands.

Harry looks at his. 'No clue, I tried almost every spell I know.' He tells us.

'Give it to Granger, she should know how to crack it.' Theo says indifferently, still trying to ignore Harry, but still have his arm around me as usual without causing a riot.

I laugh quietly at Theo, then take Harry's egg from him. 'I've been thinking about it a lot, and I can't come up with anything, even in the bath.' I tell myself, more than them. They all give me a crazy look, so I clarify. 'I think better in water, it helps calm my mind so I can think better.'

They all drop their confused looks, as I continue to toy around with the latch onto of the egg. I don't notice how Draco developed a sinister look on his face. He leans over and tells Blaise, Malik, Arsenio, Theo, and Harry about what he thought. The five of them smirked back, then nodded at Draco to start.

'So, Granger, you think better in water?' he asks, smirking evilly. I look up from my 'study' of the egg, looking at Draco with a curious look on my face. 'Well, yeah, the water calms me.'

Draco smirks widens even more, as he stands up. Theo, Blaise, Malik, Arsenio, and Harry tower over me. 'Well, maybe we should help you out.' He says. Before I get the chance to question either of them any further, they each grab onto me and lifts me up into the air.

'Hey! Malik, Arsenio, put me down!' I yell, as I start to thrash around in their hold. I only hear my twin brothers laugh evilly at me. 'No can do Mione.' Malik states, sounding quiet proud of what they are doing. I thrash harder. 'Draco! PUT ME DOWN! Theo, Blaise, HARRY!' I yell, spazzing, trying to free myself. 'No can do Mione.' I hear Draco say. I can practically hear the smirk in his voice. But before I get any further chance to question them, they lift me just a little higher, then they use their combined strength to throw me into the lake, with the golden egg still in my hand.

The ice cold water slaps my body, engulfing me deeper and deeper into the dark lake. I sigh, but immediately regret it, because I watch all my oxygen float up to the surface. I pull out my wand and silently cast the bubble head charm on me. I see oxygen float out of my wand, and the bubble engulfs my head. I take a deep breath of air, then take a look at the golden egg, glistening in the dim light. I sigh, and begin to pull myself up, but something stops me. I take another look at the egg, and the latch mocking me on top of it. I look around, then I twist the latch open, preparing myself for the screeching of the mermaid, but it never comes. Instead, I hear a sweet, melodramatic melody float out of the egg. I look back at the egg with wide, stunned and curious.

_'Come seek us where our voices sound,  
>We cannot sing above the ground,<br>And while you're searching, ponder this;  
>We've taken what you'll sorely miss,<br>An hour long you'll have to look,  
>And recover what we took,<br>But past an hour - the prospect's black,  
>Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.<em>'

I stare in awe at the egg, and close it again, trying to interpret what the mermaid meant. I look above, seeing water being splashed furiously around at the surface. I roll my eyes and take the bubble head charm off, and begin to swim to the surface, which was a lot further up than I thought. I swim just a bit further before I start to lose consciousness. I take one more stroke, and my head breaks the surface of the water, and I take a huge gulp of air.

'Hermione!' a shirtless Draco exclaims, sounding extremely relieved and slightly panic-stricken at the same time. He, along with shirtless Blaise, Theo, Malik, Arsenio, and Harry jump into the lake to come and help me. I feel one of their strong arms sling around me and they help pull me on to land, where I am still gasping for air. 'Hermione? Hermione? Are you ok? Do you feel ok? Please, say something!' Draco says frantically, running his hands gently over my body, checking over me.

'I'm, I'm f-fine.' I gasp, trying to get my breathing under control again. He guides me over to the granite rock, and sits next to me, slinging his arm over me, letting me lean on him. Harry looks at me, every inch of his face covered with suspicion and disbelief, but he doesn't say anything. Once my breathing is under control, I actually notice that all the guys around me are shirtless. 'W-wait, w-why are you all s-shirtless?' I ask them.

Theo smiles. 'We were getting really worried about you. After you being gone for several minutes, and nothing has come up but air bubbles, we thought something got you, so we were all going to go in and get you.' He tells me, sitting down on the other side of me, hugging me. I smile, and lean into his embrace, the smile back up at all of them. 'I found out.'

The smiles were wiped off all of their faces, and their faces were replaced pure confusion.

'What?' Malik asks, confused.

I lean out of Draco and Theo's embrace and smirk up to them and repeat myself. 'I found out what the egg is saying.'

**MALIK'S POV**

'I figured it out.' My sister repeats herself, but the news doesn't seem to sink in enough, at least not for me.

'But... but how?' I ask her, amazed that our prank actually accomplished something.

My sister rolls her eyes at me, again. She stands up, out of Draco and Theo's embrace to walk over to me. 'Keep your shirt off, we're going diving.' She looks at Pansy and Astoria, telling them to follow her lead. They strip of their shirt, leaving them in under garments and jeans, and walk over to us. Hermione turns and smirks at us, then turns back, and dives into the water, with my egg still in her hand. Draco puts his hands on my brother's shoulders and jumps over him, diving in after Hermione. My brother and I exchange a quick look of amusement, confused, and suspense, before we dive in.

The temperature of the water freezes me down to the bone, but my body adjusts quickly, giving me more time to look for my brother. I see him, a couple meters away. I swim towards him, then we continue on looking for our sister. I spot her several meters below us, so I grab my brother's arm and tug him downward.

**'Ugh, Mione, how did you stay down here so long?' **I ask her, losing oxygen at an alarming rate.

**'And you're the 5****th**** champion? Come on Malik, you're a wizard.' **She jokes at me, I can see her rolling her eyes below me. I feel embarrassment wash over me, but I take out my wand and silently cast the bubble head charm on myself. My brother and the others follow my lead and cast the charm on themselves. Once they have, they begin to swim towards my sister, who is just grinning broadly. Once she sees that we are all gathered, she reaches for the latch, but doesn't turn it. She looks at us, trying to get it in her glance that there is nothing to fear.

**'Relax, this is actually really cool.' **she reassures my brother and I, but we don't take her word for it. We reach for our ears and cover them, and everyone else follows our lead. My sister just rolls her eyes, and twists the latch open, and I prepare myself for the inhumane screeching, but it never came. I uncover my ears, and they are met with a sad, sweet sounding melody almost floating out of the egg.

_ 'Come seek us where our voices sound,  
>We cannot sing above the ground,<br>And while you're searching, ponder this;  
>We've taken what you'll sorely miss,<br>An hour long you'll have to look,  
>And recover what we took,<br>But past an hour - the prospect's black,  
>Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.<em>'

I look up in amazement at my sister, and she just smiles proudly. I look around to see that my expression was mirrored by everyone else. Hermione closes the egg, and begins to swim back up, and we quickly follow.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I'm the first to get back on land, m wet hair flinging around as I wait for the others to break the surface as well. One by one, they reappear, swimming towards land. Draco is the first to get back, and he's looking at me with something I can't put my finger on. 'What?' I ask him, smiling.

He walks over to me, smiling likes he's seen the sun for the first time. 'You, are amazing Hermione. I don't think anyone else would have figured that out.' He tells me. I sit back down on the rock, waving my wand over myself, silently saying 'Scougify,' and watch as all the water from my hair and clothes magically evaporates. I do the same to Draco, then invite him to sit next to me. 'Well it's all thanks to your stupid prank.' I joke, laughing. He doesn't laugh back, he awkwardly looks away. I look curiously at him. 'What? What's wrong?' I ask him.

He sighs, then looks back at me. 'I thought something happened to you, I thought that the lake monster came up and ate you, or that those freaky mermaids dragged you off into their lair, or-'

'Draco, you're being ridiculous. Nothing happened to me.' I reassure him, putting my hand gently on his shoulder.

He sighs again. 'I know, but if something did, it would have been my fault, since it was my fault that you were thrown into the lake in the first place.' He says sadly.

'Yes, it's all your fault that I figured out what the egg was saying. And it's your fault that Malik and Harry now know what to do in the 2nd task.' I joke. I see him smile, so I know I've cracked him. 'Draco, really, I'm fine.' I say,. I lean up to him and lightly kiss him on the cheek. Once I pull away, his face breaks into a radiant grin, and he relaxes, leaning onto the tree. 'Just remember Draco, you pranked the brightest witch of her age, you better watch your back.' I joke, smirking mischievously.

He laughs too, smiling. 'Yeah, just promise me one thing.' He says, entwining his fingers in mine.

I look up at him, waiting for him to continue. 'What?' I ask him.

He pauses, smiling at me lovingly, but jokingly. 'Don't scare me like that again.'

I blush, and look away, but I can tell by the atmosphere that he's just smiling, so I lean my head against his shoulder. Everyone else is starting to make their way to land. My brothers are the first back on land. They get out, sopping wet.

'How did you guys dry off so fast?' Arsenio asks me, bewildered .

I'm about to answer, but Malik cuts me off, 'What are you doing?' he asks me, sounding slightly ticked off and curious at the same time, but his annoyance over took his tone.

I'm confused about what he meant, until he motioned towards my hand, that is still intertwined with Draco's. I release my hand from his, then answer Arsenio's question. 'Honestly! Don't you know that you are a wizard?' I ask, disbelief laced in my voice. I wave my want over my brothers, and watch them magically dry off.

'Oh, I knew that. I was making sure you were, on your toes.' Arsenio bluffed, blushing. Astoria and Pansy got out next, I could hear Astoria laughing at my brother. 'Oh, of course you did.' They walk over to their normal spot by the rippling lake. Shortly after, Theo, Blaise and Harry get out after, magically drying themselves off, then taking their spots by the lake. Draco is still sitting next to me, which angers Theo, but he doesn't do anything, because Harry is watching us all with keen, sharp looks of confusion and suspicion.

The tension in the group is still evident, so I decided to try and ease it. 'You better thank Draco for his ingenious idea of throwing me in the lake.' I succeed in releasing the tension, because everyone laughs, and the tension almost magically disappears instantaneously. I almost don't notice that Draco takes this chance to take my hand again. I look at my hand in his, and look up at him, and his expression almost breaks me. His blue eyes are pleading with me not to let go, so I sigh and give in, giving him a small smile. He smiles back, twenty times as radiant as before, then relaxes against the tree. 'Hey, Potter?' Draco asks, smirking, not letting go of my hand. Harry looks over at us, his first expression being disbelief, but it is quickly replaced with confusion. 'Yeah, Malfoy?' he asks.

Draco breaks into a competitive smirk. 'We're going to kick your arse at the next Quidditch match.'

Harry's expression is replaced with pure shock, as well as everyone else except Malik, who had a look of accomplishment plastered onto his face. 'Oh, we'll see about that Malfoy.' He smirks back, rivaling Draco's own smirk. They lean over to each other, shake on it, then return to their positions.

I lean into Draco's embrace, then something comes to mind. 'Hey, do any of you know what time it is?' I ask anyone who will answer.

Blaise looks at his watch. 'Um, it's 4:45, why?' he asks me.

'Oh, I wanted to go talk to Father about letting me go to the Yule Ball with Krum.' I answer, oblivious that Harry is still among us.

Harry loses it. He stands up, outraged. 'What the HELL are you talking about? And what is up with you today? You warmed up to Malfoy MUCH faster than you should have, and I haven't said anything because I thought maybe you were just trying to be nice, but Father? Who the bloody hell is Father?' Why would YOUR Father here? He's a goddamn Muggle! Explain yourself Hermione!' he yells at me.

I cringe under his glare, and there's no way I can work myself out of this one, so I resort to desperate measures. 'Obliviate!' I yell, yanking my wand out of my boot and pointing it at Harry's head, then concentrate on everything that disapproved of, and yanked it out of his memory. Once I was done, I immediately put my wand back in my boot and sit down next to Draco, a bit further from him though. Harry snapped out of his trance then looked around, confused.

'Oh! Hermione! Sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off, what were you going to say?' he asks me, sitting back down. I sigh, relieved, but not relieved enough to see everyone else's reaction to what I just did to my best friend. Over-ridden with guilt, I say, 'Oh, I just had a question for Professor Snape, about something the mermaid was talking about. I'll see you later.' I say, getting quieter with every word, then I promptly strode away from the willow tree, leaving everyone else behind, tears threating to fall from my eyes.

I silently walk down the empty hallway, my head hanging in grief ,my footsteps echoing me the whole time, that is, until I accidentally ran into someone, knocking us both into the ground.

'Oh, I'm sorry, it's my-Ron?' I ask, looking up once again to see Ron's freckled face, looking down on me, amused.

'You seem to be doing that a lot today.' He jokes, helping me up. I smile at him halfheartedly. 'Thanks Ron.' I say.

'Wait, where are you going?' he asks me, walking with me.

'Oh, I'm going to Professor Snape's office, I've got some questions regarding the egg.' I answer, half truthfully.

'Oh, ok. Well, I'll walk with you there, then I'll leave.' He smiles.

I smile back, but don't say anything, just glad for his company. He seems glad just to be with me, so he doesn't say anything, but he breaks the silence. 'Hey, Hermione?' he asks.

I turn and look at him. 'Yeah?'

'Why did you say you were going to Snape's again?' he asks curiously.

'Oh,' I stuttered, trying to get my facts straight, without exposing myself. 'I just wanted to ask about the egg, that Harry got in the task.' I lied smoothly, getting better at lying.

He buys it, which is a brilliant sign that my lying is getting better. 'Alright, well, we're here. I'll talk to you later?' he asks, stopping.

'Yeah, see you later Ron.' I smile at him, before stepping into my Father's office.

'What do you want?' my Father snarls, not noticing it was me. 'I've got enough to do without ignorant students breathing down my neck.'

I roll my eyes at him. 'Nice to see you too Father.'

I see him jerk his head up, surprised. 'Oh! Mia! Sorry, I didn't see you, come in.' he stands up, gesturing me in. 'Did you need something?' he asks me.

'Yes, actually, I just wanted to make sure you were ok with me going to the Yule Ball with Viktor.' I smile innocently.

He sighs, dejected that this was the topic his youngest daughter wanted to discuss. 'Hermione, we've been over this, I'm not so sure I want you going with him.'

I knew this was coming, so I had all my prepared arguments at whatever he said. 'Name your reasons.' I command, smiling.

'Fine, have it your way Hermione.' My Father smiles, ready for what I have to say. 'One, he goes to Durmstrang. Two, he's internationally famous, and three, it's hard to trust someone like him.

Excellent, this much I have prepared. 'He goes to Durmstrang, if you had such a problem with the school, why did you send the twins there?' I ask smartly, hoping to get him to fumble.

But he doesn't. 'I sent them there under reputation. I'm known to be a death eater, so I sent my sons there.' He answers without pausing.

This strikes an odd thought. 'Then how come Draco, Blaise, Theo, Pansy, Crabbe, Goyle, and Astoria weren't sent there?' I ask curiously, straying off topic.

'Ah, I wondered when you would catch on. They were sent here because Voldemort wanted spies in the three oldest and famous wizarding schools.' He answers.

I shake my head, not wanting to stray off topic again. 'Ok and he's internationally famous. So what? So is Dumbledore, and Harry, but they are the most trustworthy people I know, besides you and the rest of my family.' I ask.

He stumbles, obviously not expecting this. 'Well, I think the fame got to his head, unlike Potter. Potter wants nothing to do with his scar or his past. Krum on the other hand, takes it all in like it's going out of style. He can't seem to get enough of his fame. Therefore, he probably feels superior to you.' He answers again, once again not missing a beat.

My eyes widen in surprise, not expecting his answer, but I continue anyway. 'And you can't trust him? What about him can't you trust?' I ask him.

'I just went through this. He's an international Quidditch player. He let fame get to his head. Plus, he's three years older than you. I don't want you dating someone that much older than you. He's in his final year, although I must admit, you probably know more than him, and you're a fourth year. And, for the fact that he goes to Durmstrang, the place where future death eaters attend, he's into some dark magic over at that school.' He defends himself.

'Dark magic? Father, I've helped fight off Voldemort twice, and I freed Sirius last year using the time turner. I think I can take a dim-witted Durmstrang student.' I add in dim-witted, hoping it will appeal to my Father.

'Dim-witted indeed.' He agrees, smirking.

'So I can go with him?' I ask innocently, smiling up at him, with my best attempt at puppy dog eyes.

I hear him sigh, which means he gave in. 'Fine, you can go with him.' I squeal, and go up and hug him, as he continues. 'But promise me one thing.'

I look up at him. 'Anything Father, what?' I ask.

He smiles back down at me. 'Promise me that you won't talk to him again once this ball is over. I don't want you associating with him.'

'Seems a little harsh, but fine, I promise.' I pause, before adding, 'I solemnly swear that I will not engage any contact with him after the ball is finished.'

He rolls his eyes at me. 'Nice Hermione. Come on, the feast is beginning soon.' He says, gesturing me to the door. 'And, it was nice having you drop by, but I can't delay grading these 1st year potions assignments any longer.' He says goodheartedly.

I laugh, and roll my eyes at my Father. 'Alright, I'll see you later.'

'Bye Mia.' He says, smiling lovingly.

I smile back at him, then close the door behind me, round the corner, and head to the Great Hall.

I enter the bustling hall, and take my seat at the Gryffindor table, between Ron and Ginny, and in font of Harry.

'Oh my god Hermione, guess what tomorrow is?' Ginny squeals excitedly.

(The Next Day)

'Get UP Hermione! We've got to go dress shopping!'

I groan, and throw my pillow to the source of the sound, hoping to shut it up. 'No… 10 more minutes.' I groan, trying to fall back asleep, which is proving impossible, due to the harsh movement on my bed, caused by a frantic, excited Ginny bouncing up and down on it.

'No! We have to leave now! The carriages leave in 45 minutes!' she exclaims, fanatically trying to get me up.

'Why can't you let me sleep till them?' I complain, tiredly.

'Because, we have to get ready!' she says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

I groan, and get up, knowing it's useless to try and argue with her. 'Fine, I'm up. What should I wear?' I ask sarcastically, getting up, and brushing my wild bed hair.

'Just something nice, but not to dressy.' She says, oblivious to my sarcasm.

I roll my eyes at her absence in the world. I walk over to my trunk, and pull out a pair of blue skinny jeans, a blue blouse, and a pair of black flats. I throw it on, and pull my newly straightened hair into a messy ponytail. 'Is this ok?' I ask her.

'That's good, now come on! We've got to leave now!' she says, pulling my arm towards the staircase, then pushes me down them.

'Don't break Hermione Ginny, we need her.' Harry smirks, waiting at the bottom of the stairs for us.

I smile up at Harry, and get up off the floor. 'Thanks Harry.' I turn around and stick my tongue out Ginny, who was pouting, but trying really hard not to laugh.

'Mature. Come on now children.' Harry says, mimicking a school teacher to younger children. Ginny and both laugh, and follow Harry out the portrait hole.

We all walk down the hallway, until Ginny says, 'Sorry Harry, but I promised I would ride with Pavarti and Padma.' She says.

I look at her wide-eyed. _Oh no… _I think to myself, knowing exactly what they would be talking about, and it's one word. Fashion.

'Oh, understood, I don't want to hear about fashion anyway.' Harry says. 'I'll talk to you later?' he asks, even though he knows there isn't a need for that.

'Sure, bye Harry!' Ginny says, waving goodbye, and grabbing onto my arm before I get the chance to go with Harry.

Ginny drags me all the way to the Front Door, wear the carriages are waiting for us. 'Oh, there they are!' Ginny squeals, while I inwardly groan. Don't get me wrong, I love them both, but when the three of them are together, plus Lavender, it equals 40 minutes of pure mind numbness for me.

'Hey Ginny, Hermione! Come on in!' Pavarti says happily, waving us over. Ginny drags me in the carriage and closes the door.

Forty mind numbing minutes later, we pull into Hogsmeade. 'Oh! We're there!' I exclaim, relieved beyond words. I yank the door open, and ungracefully fall the dirt road on my knees.

'Love you too Hermione.' Ginny says sarcastically, as she jumps out of the carriage. 'See you later.' Ginny says, turning around and waving the girls in the carriage goodbye.

'Bye Ginny, Hermione.' The girls simultaneously. Ginny waves back, and turns back to me. 'Come on Hermione, it's dress time!'

I groan, and walk off with her. 'Oh ok, are we looking for something for you too?' I ask her.

'No, I'm wearing something of my mom's, something she wore to the party where she first met my dad.' She says.

'Whoa, nice.' I smile. She smiles back to me, then turns her attention back to the alley, looking for her favorite store.

'Oh! There it is!' she squeals excitedly. She forcefully grabs my wrist and literally drags me into '_Madam Malkin's' _

'Welcome to Madam Malkin's.' Madam Malkin greets us, looking up from her work to greet us.

Ginny and I smile back at her, then Ginny heads straight for the dresses on the rack, and selects three off of it. 'Here Hermione, try these on.' She says, handing me the dresses. I give her one more desperate look before heading off to the dressing room.

**DRACO'S POV**

'Can you remind me why I have to come?' Blaise asks, smirking.

Theo and I forcefully drag Blaise in the direction of Madam Malkin's. 'Because, we need cuff links for our tuxes for the ball tomorrow.' Theo fills in, both he and I know he's lying.

'Oh face it! The only reason you two want to go in here is because you saw Hermione walk in there.' Blaise whispers in an undertone, smirking at the both of us.

'Fine, that's the MAIN reason why I want to go in there, now will you come?' I say, forcefully dropping Blaise's wrist.

'Yeah yeah, whatever I need to do to stop the two of you from ogling over a picture of her in your dorms.' Blaise jokes, knowing this isn't true, entirely.

'I don't ogle over it! I merely sleep with it under my pillow.' Theo jokes back, but all three of know that he really isn't joking.

Blaise and I laugh at him, and the three of us walk into Madam Malkin's.

'Welcome to Madam Malkin.' The Madam greets us, smiling. We nod, acknowledging her presence, and we all head over to the cuff links. I scan the racks, looking for some emerald ones to replace my snake cuff links my Father sent me. As much as I love my Father, he has the weirdest obsession with snakes. I guess being a lifelong Slytherin does stuff to you. I finally find some, when Blaise hits me over the shoulder. 'Ow! What the hel-'

'Look, over there.' Blaise cuts me off, pointing in the direction of the dressing rooms. I'm about to ask what I'm staring at, but my eyes cut me off. Stepping gracefully out of the dressing room, is an angel, dressed in a flowing white gown. Hermione, my Hermione, dressed as an angel, how ironic. I already thought of her as an angel, more beautiful than anything else that graced this earth. She blushes as the red head says something to her, then her beautiful brown eyes make their way over to where me, Blaise, and Theo are standing. She smiles, but it's cut off when the red head turns around to look at what she's looking at. The red head walks over to us, with Hermione right behind her, but I'm too lost in heaven just looking at Hermione. I would be the happiest man alive if I could just stare into her brilliant violet eyes forever. I would even be happy with her chocolate brown eyes too. But my few seconds on Cloud 9 was abruptly interrupted when the red head snapped her fingers in front of me.

'What are you looking at Malfoy? Here to insult Hermione? Good luck, with her in that dress.' She says, suspicious of why we are in here, and why I was staring at Hermione.

I'm snapped out of my trance when Blaise hits me over the shoulder, nearly knocking me to the ground. 'W-what?' I stutter.

Hermione darts her eyes towards me, telling me to think of something fast, but Blaise fills in for me. 'We're just looking for cuff links for the Ball tomorrow.' He says smoothly.

Ginny still looks suspicious, but her gaze softens a bit. 'Ok…' then she turns back to Hermione. 'I don't know, it just doesn't… shine.' She says. _What? Doesn't shine? Why are girls so picky? That dress looks amazing on her, she looks like an angel, my angel. She's absolutely beautiful, and intelligent, witty, comical, Stop it Draco, before you start drooling. _'It's looks amazing on her.' I mumble under my breath, but that red-head's sharp ear catches it.

'I beg your pardon?' she asks in disbelief and anger. Hermione tries to hold her back, but her attempts are fugal.

I take one look at Hermione, and the desperate look on her face, and that gives me all the courage I needed. 'I didn't say anything _Ginny.' _I say, emphasizing her name.

This takes her by surprise, but she lets it go, turning back to Hermione. 'Come on Hermione, I want you to try the blue one on.' She says, pulling Hermione with her.

'I think you look amazing Granger.' Theo says, getting Hermione's attention, and Ginny's for that matter. Hermione turns around and blushes, then turns back on Ginny's command. I silently curse Theo, for having the courage to say something like that in front of Ginny. But, the only thing I can do is glare at him with envy and anger, but he doesn't notice.

'Ah come on you love sick puppies, the cuff links are waiting.' Blaise says knocking the two of us out of our trances.

'Fine fine.' I grumble, walking back over to the cuff links and picking up the emerald cuff links. I look over at Blaise and Theo, who picked theirs out. 'Ok, let's get these and go.' I say, walking over to the store clerk.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I show Ginny the ruffled blue one, but I can tell by the disappointed look in her eyes that this isn't the one either. 'So, what do you think?' I ask tiredly.

'No, that isn't the one either… it just doesn't sparkle on you.' She says. She levitates the last dress into my hands. 'This is the last one. If this doesn't work, then I'll have to look for some more.' She says. I open my hands to catch the silky golden fabric in between my fingers. I feel the fabric in my fingers, and the soft, silk material almost slips through my fingers. I take one last look at Ginny before walking back into the changing room. I wave my wand over my body, and switch the dresses, so that the ruffled blue one hangs on a hook, while the golden one hangs on my body. I can tell that this one is much different from the rest.

The sleeveless, sequined sweetheart top accented my slim arms and neck, and the white and gold colors really showed off my complexion, and it showed the right amount of cleavage. It dips in the back to show off my back, and it then flows into a long, golden and white skirt. It's cut in the front, meant for showing off slim legs like mine. I run my hands over my body, loving the way the dress made me feel. If this isn't the one, then I'm not going to the ball. I step outside to show Ginny.

I step out, and smile at Ginny, letting her know that I love this dress. She smiles back at me, and motions for me to spin. I spin, the skirt flying around my body. I stop spinning long enough to see Draco and Theo staring in awe at me while Blaise just doubles over laughing. I smile at them, letting them know that I saw them. Draco is the first to snap out of it, he smiles at me radiantly, letting me know that he loves the dress as much as I do. I turn back to Ginny, how is smiling at me. 'So, what do you think?' I ask her happily.

'That's what I'm talking about Hermione!' Ginny exclaims. I squeal happily, then rush back inside the dressing room to take it off. I wave my wand over me, magically taking the dress off and put it in back on the hook and step back outside. 'Come on! Let's buy it!' I walk over to the clerk, and hand her the dress.

'Is this all that you will be buying today?' she asks, taking the dress and putting it in a bag.

'Yes.' I answer, smiling giddily.

'Ok, it's 350 galleons.' She says. Ginny's eyes boggle out of her head, but I have it covered. My Father gave me 1000 galleons for the year, so it's not a big deal. 'Here you go.' I say, handing her the money.

'Thank you, have a wonderful day.' She says perkily. I take my dress and walk out with Ginny, who was practically skipping out of the store. I look over my shoulder to see Theo and Draco staring after me, so I decide to say something to them. 'Hey Ginny, can you wait out here?' I ask her.

'Hehe, sure!' she says, swinging her arms back and forth.

I smile at her, then run back into the store. Draco and Theo were turned around, talking to Blaise. I sneak up to Draco, motioning to Blaise not to say anything. I walk up behind Draco, who is actually only 3 inches taller than me, and hug him from behind. 'Guess who?' I ask.

He jerks around, surprised and happy. 'Hermione!' he exclaims, hugging me back.

I laugh at him. 'Just couldn't keep your eyes away could you? Either one of you.' I say, gesturing to Theo as well.

'Ironic, that's exactly what I was telling the before you came back in here.' Blaise muses, amused.

I let go of Draco and laugh at Draco and Theo's facial expressions. But Theo snaps out of it and comes over to hug me as well. 'Yeah yeah, I couldn't help myself, you looked flawless in that dress.' He says, hugging me. I laugh again, looking over Theo's shoulder to see Draco's face contort into a sort of annoyed expression.

'I'm going to have to take all of my self-control plus a little extra help from Merlin to keep myself from beating Krum's arse off back to Bulgaria when he dances with you. He better be a good dancer.' Draco says, smiling at me.

I smile back and him, and let go of Theo. 'Well, I have to go, Ginny's waiting outside.' I say, walking away from the threesome, but not before one calls me back.

'What? No hug for me?' Blaise asks goodheartedly, opening his arms for me. I laugh again, walking into them to give him a quick hug. 'See you later Blaise, all three of you.' I let go of Blaise and walk back outside, the where Ginny was still happily swinging her arms.

'Ok, let's go Ginny.' I say, pulling her with me.

'OH MY MERLIN! I've got the best shoes for your dress! Oh, you're going to be the crowning JEWEL of that ball tomorrow!' she exclaims, high on happiness.

I laugh at her reaction to a dress. 'Whatever you say Ginny.'


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters that are found in J.K Rowling's series, nor do I own anything listed on my disclaimer list on my page, would you mind looking at it?**

**A/N: Thanks guys! I now have TWO beta readers! (MY old one has RETURNED! She is BACK! :) And anyway, bear with me, this is the Yule Ball chapter, and I can't write these scenes well, and something tells me that the Yule Ball was AFTER the second task, but that's why I need beta readers! [:**

**Enjoy! I hope…**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 18

'Hermione! HERMIONE! Get up!'

I jerk awake; frustrated that someone woke me up once again. 'What?' I ask exasperatedly.

'The Yule Ball is in 12 hours! We have to start getting ready!' a perky voice answers, shaking me awake.

I my eyes focus on whose shaking me, to see Ginny, Lavender, and Pavarti hovering over me, smiling madly. I widen my eyes in disbelief. 'Are you mental? Who takes twelve hours to get ready for a four hour ball?' I ask, disbelief lacing my tired voice.

'We're not getting dressed yet, we just need to get your face and hair ready before the ball.' Lavender explains.

'My face?' I ask, pausing in between each word, disbelief rising in my voice, almost sounding offended.

'No! Your face is fine how it is, we just need to moisture your face over, then cover your face in avocado, after breakfast.' Pavarti clarifies.

The process still didn't seem any less ridiculous to me, but I give in, hoping to get a couple hours of extra rest. 'Ok ok, fine! Can I sleep now?' I ask, closing my eyes, falling back onto my pillow.

'No! We have to start now!' Ginny exclaims, taking one of my arms while Lavender takes the other and pulls me up.

I give them the most menacing glares I can at eight in the morning. 'Fine. What do I have to do?' I ask, needless for an answer, because I knew they would tell me even if I didn't ask.

'Just go into the bathroom, and wait for us.' Lavender says cheerfully, oblivious to my annoyance at the three of them. I walk into the bathroom, and sit on the stool, waiting impatiently for them to come in and 'fix me.'

**'Whoa, someone's seems agitated.' **Arsenio muses.

**'What's up?' **Malik asks.

**'I'm just waiting to become a Barbie doll.' **I spat, annoyed.

**'Christ women! No need to snap.' **Malik says back, sounding offended.

**'And what's a Barbie doll?' **Arsenio asks curiously.

I feel guilt wash over me. **'I'm sorry, I just don't want to be dolled up 12 hours before the ball.' **I apologize. **'Oh, and a Barbie is just a mini mannequin.' **I answer Arsenio's question.

**'It's fine, see you at breakfast?' **Arsenio asks.

**'Maybe… if I'm not taped down to this stool.' **I joke, pulling out, because my wacked out friends enter the bathroom, carrying all sorts of face care products.

'Let's get started!' Lavender squeals, placing her products on the counter. She selects a lotion off the counter and squirts some into her hand. 'Look this way Hermione.' I'm about to question her, but she slaps her hands on my face and begins to rub the rose smelling lotion on my face. She rubs it in for a good decent 5 minutes before she stops and gets another product from the counter. She reaches up for my face again, but I grab her wrists. 'Hey, I'm not 5. I can put the lotion on myself.' I rub the lotion off her hands and on rub it on myself.

'Oh, breakfast starts in 5 minutes.' Ginny says, rushing out of the bathroom, followed by Lavender and Pavarti, so they can get dressed. I sigh, and follow them out, throwing on a pair of skinny jeans and a red shirt and rush out the door before any of them could catch up to me.

'Whoa, slow down! You're about to run me over!' Harry says, holding his hands out in front of him, stopping me.

I grab onto his shoulders to stop myself. 'Oh! Sorry Harry! I was running away from Ginny and her vicious crew of make-up artists.' I answer, letting go of Harry's arm, following him out the common room door and to the Great Hall.

'Ah, I see. Makes sense.' Harry laughs. I hit him over the arm, but that only causes him to laugh harder. He turns and looks over his shoulder and screams, 'Hermione! They're running down the hallway!'

I scream, and whip my head around, frantically looking for the crazy red head and her friends. 'Oh my god where? Do they have that freaky smelling lotion with them?' I scream frantically.

Harry doubles over laughing. 'T-that's k-karma f-for y-you H-hermione!' He stammers out between laughs. It takes a while for me to get my breathing under control again. I look at Harry furiously. 'Harry you arse!' I yell at him, hitting him over the shoulder as hard as I can.

He manages to get his breathing under control enough to say something to me. I'm expecting an apology but that's not what I get. 'Remember at the end of summer? When Kreacher was chasing me? You did the SAME EXACT thing to me. You feel the rue? YOU FEEL IT?' He jokes, sending himself into another fit of laughter.

Ticked off, I pull a doubled over Harry to the Great Hall, and shove him down onto his seat. I begin to moodily fill my plate with toast and fruit, peeling my banana and taking a huge bite out of it.

'I'm sorry Mione, but you have to admit, if you were me, that would have been really funny.' Harry says, trying to even it out.

I sigh, both he and I know that I can't stay mad at him. 'Yeah, I suppose it would have been funny…' I trail off again, taking another bite of my banana. Harry smiles at me, then shifts his gaze to the door at the entrance to the Great Hall. 'Um, Hermione?'

I turn and look at him. 'What is it this time?' I ask, expecting another joke.

'They're here.' He says simply.

'Enough Harry, I got it, it was funny.' I wave him off, laughing.

'No Hermione, they're real-'

'Come on Hermione! We've got work to do!' Pavarti's only too cheery voice surprises me from behind. I jump up, and look desperately at Harry, who was only smirking at me, taking a bite out his apple. I sigh, and stand up, holding out my arms so they can drag me off to my doom.

'Yay! Don't worry, you'll be free from us around 7 or 8.' Ginny reassures me, but if really doesn't offer me any. I sigh one last time, before I let the three of them drag me off to the girl's dormitories.

'Oh Hermione! You're going to look amazing, I can't wait to get started!' Lavender exclaims.

'But what about you guys? Aren't you guys going to do each other?' I ask, hoping to get out of the situation.

'We won't take as long, we all know how to do make-up, so we will do each other after we are finished with you.' Pavarti says.

'Aw, thanks guys.' I say sarcastically.

I walk with them silently, as they gab on and on about what kind of make-up would look best on me. We approach the Gryffindor common room, and we step inside, and head up to the common room. They push me inside our dorms and into the bathroom.

'Ok! Let's get started!' Ginny exclaimed, holding a bottle of mascara in one hand, and a brush in the other.

Six long, drawn out hours later, Ginny breaks into a smile. 'We're, we're done!' Ginny exclaims tiredly, wiping the sweat from her brow.

Lavender, Pavarti, and Ginny pack their things away, and clean up what they created.

'So? Can I look at myself now?' I ask, anxious to see that they did to me.

'You ready?' Ginny asks. I nod, needless to say anything. She turns me around so I face the mirror behind me. What I am met with is twenty times greater than my original standards.

My make-up is done actually very lightly. They did my eyes with mascara and very little eye liner. My blush is done very lightly, showing a very light pink color, and my eye shadow is a light gold, shining every time I closed my eyes. But the most impressive thing, is what they did with my hair.

Half of my hair was done up into a French bun, and the rest hung down, layering my hair. The rest was gracefully hanging down, down to my back. They curled my hair just slightly, making my hair wavy rather than straight. They completely transformed me, and I absolutely love it.

'Ginny, Pavarti, Lavender, I don't know what to say…. Thank you!' I exclaim, jumping up and hugging them each.

'It was our pleasure Hermione. Now, we have to do each other. Try not to jump around a whole ton. And don't forget, the ball starts in 1 hour.' Pavarti says, getting her materials out again.

'Are you going to have enough time?' I ask worriedly, but then quickly snap out of it, knowing that the normal me wouldn't care.

'We'll be fine Hermione. Oh, and thee shoes that I was talking about, I put them on my bed.' Ginny says, magically brushing out Lavender's hair.

'Thanks Ginny.' I smile, walking outside the bathroom, and heading over to Ginny's bed and opening the box she laid out for me. I opened it, and smiled brightly. The shoes she had we may be about 5 inch golden heels that strap around my ankle and around my feet. I put them on, while I'm still wearing my skinny jeans and t-shirt, just to test to make sure I can actually walk in them. I stand up, and walk around the dorm. I smile, reassured that I won't fall flat on my face while dancing. But I'm immediately snapped out of my thoughts when I hear a light tapping on the window. Outside, a brilliant looking, almost royal looking Barn Owl is tapping on the glass, holding his leg out, showing a brown package tied to his leg. I walk over to the window, not missing a step in the heels, and open the window. The owl flies in, and sits on my bed post, holding his leg out for me. I walk back over to my bed, and begin to untie the package, while petting the owl on his head. Once I get the package untied, the owl flies over to where I keep owl treats, in a bag on my desk.

'Oh, sure. You can have some.' I say, smiling. I walk over to my old, wooden desk and reach into the bag, and pull out four or five owl treats, and hold them out in my hand. The owl takes them, then flies out. I walk back over to the package, and untie the note from the top of it.

Dear Hermione,

I saw the dress you bought the other day, and I wanted you to have something. It's my grandmother's, but I want you to have them. Plus, if you have to dance with Krum all night, I figured you should have something of mine to remind you of. There's no need to return them. I want you to have them.

-Love, Draco

I set the note aside and open the brown package. I undo the knots on the package. Once opened, I take out the more decorated box, and untying the ribbon on that. I open the soft, velvet box and lift out the almost delicate looking jewelry inside.

Inside the box, I lifted up a delicate, gold chain resting in my fingers, and resting on the chain, was a solid gold heart, decorated with diamonds and rubies, in the shape on an "H." I gently set the necklace down on my bed and take out the other contents of the box, a pair of solid gold matching earrings, decorated with rubies hanging from the golden hoop.

'Oh, Draco, thank you.' I whisper to myself, mesmerized by what he sent. I look at my clock, which reads 6:30. 'Hm, I've got time.' I take the shoes off and grab my favorite book, 'Hogwarts, a History.' And go and sit on the window sill.

'Hermione! We need to get dressed!' Lavender calls from the bathroom, having Pavarti tying up her dress.

I look up at my clock, which reads 7:40. 'Ok!' I yell back. I throw my book back on my desk and carefully take my dress off the hook. I slip it on, careful not to mess up my hair, and slip my shoes on. I walk back over to my bed, where Draco's gifts lay.

'Ginny? Can you come and put this on me?' I ask her, holding up the necklace to her.

'Oh, Hermione! It's beautiful! Where did you get that?' she asks, gently taking the necklace from me and clasping in around my neck.

_Oh, just from the one and only Prince of Slytherin, Draco Malfoy, who has been out for our blood ever since first year. _'Oh, my Mother sent it to me.' I lie, smoothly.

'I'm jealous! I wish my Mother sent me beautiful jewelry!' Lavender swooned.

I smile at her, putting the earrings on, then taking a final look at my reflection in the mirror. I'm met with a beautiful looking girl, dressed in gold.

'Oh Hermione, you look amazing!' Ginny gushed. I smile back at her, unable to find the right words. 'Oh,' she said, looking at the clock. 'I've got to go meet Neville. I'll see you girls at the Ball!' Ginny said, skipping out of the room.

'I've got to go too, I'm meeting Padma outside, and then we're going to go meet our dates outside the great hall.' Pavarti says, following Ginny out.

'See you down there Hermione!' Lavender says, smiling at me before following Pavarti and Ginny out of the common room. Completely alone, I smile radiantly, and begin spinning, watching the way the dress twirls around me. I smile, then begin to walk down to the deserted common room, and down the empty hallway. I hear the bustling of other students down the hallway. I look around the corner, only to see Pavarti trying to get Harry's attention. I guess I laughed a bit too loudly, because it caught both Pavarti and Harry's attention.

'Oh… great. Well, here goes nothing.' I whisper under my breath, then take a step around the corner and cautiously take my first step down the stairs.

I could feel my face getting hotter and hotter with every face that turned around. I tried to cover up my ever growing embarrassment with a small smile, but my smile falters when the bottom of the stairs seems to just get further and further away.

_Oh, why does the bottom of the stairs have to be so far away…? _I think desperately to myself. _Just keep smiling, the end has to be here somewhere. _

'Whoa, Hermione…' Harry says, grabbing a hold of my shoulders, snapping me out of my thoughts and robotic movements.

'Oh, Harry! Sorry, I suppose I wasn't paying attention.' I said, blushing. I looked over at Pavarti, who was winking at me.

'You look, amazing, Hermione.' Harry said, blushing himself.

'Ah stop Harry. You've got your own gorgeous date here.' I say, laughing at Harry. Pavarti smiles at me, and Harry smiles back at Pavarti. 'Yeah, I know.' He says. He offers out his arm, which Pavarti graciously takes. I laugh quietly as I watch the two of them walk off into line with the other champions.

**'Whoa, look at you going to the ball with Arsenio! You asked Astoria?' **I ask, looking for Viktor.

**'Yeah, I did.' **Arsenio said proudly.

**'How about you Malik? Who did you ask?' **I ask.

**'Oh, I asked this girl, Rosalia Marks, she's from Beauxbatons.' **He answers.

I look over to where the champions are supposed to line up with their dates. First, is Fleur with her date, then Cedric with Cho, Harry with Pavarti, and Malik with Rosalia. 

'Mione?' I hear a thick Bulgarian accent behind me.

I turn around, to see Viktor standing behind me. 'Oh! Viktor!' I greet him, hugging him.

'You look, beautiful.' He says, I his hard to understand accent.

'Aw, thank you.' I say, blushing only slightly. He offers his arm, which I take. He guides me to his place in line, and we wait for the doors to open.

'Alright Champions! These doors are going to open very soon, and you 5 are going to open the ball, by being the first to dance.' Professor McGonagall tells us. She smiles, then opens the doors, as the trumpets begin to blare. One by one, each of the pairs before us enters the Great Hall, and before I have time to gather any of my scattered plots together, it's our turn to enter the Great Hall.

The clapping is almost deafening, people clapping for their favorite Quidditch player. I smile and wave as I walk past my friends, Ginny, Lavender, Blaise, Draco, Theo, Pansy, all of them. Lavender, Ginny, and Pansy are screaming and waving at me, Blaise is only smirking at me, and Draco and Theo are just trying to keep their cool and not pound Viktor's face in. We, along with the other champions, take our places on the empty dance floor as everyone else crowds around. Viktor and I stop about mid-center and wait for the music to start. Viktor gently puts his hands on my waist, and I could tell that the atmosphere kind of tensed around me. I could almost guess that Draco and Theo were behind me, and as for me, I didn't get that spark I was expecting before. But before I think about it any further, I hear the crystal orchestra begins to play a waltz, and Viktor begins to lead.

Waltzing is definitely different that ballet, which is what I used to take as a kid, and actually still do during the summer. But personally, I'm having a blast. Come time for the lift, Viktor thrusts me in the air and spins me around. And after, other students and their dates begin to walk onto the dance floor, and join into the ancient waltz. And turns out I was right, Draco with Pansy, and Theo with his date were standing right behind me. The four of them stepped out behind my original position and began to dance, rather close to Viktor and I. And soon enough, everyone else with their dates join into the dance, and soon everyone is dances in unison

Viktor is just beaming the whole time, and I feel a growing sense of guilt wash over me. I promised pretty much everyone that I wouldn't talk to Viktor ever again after this ball. _Oh well, I guess I can always say that my date to the Yule Ball was the International Quidditch champion, Viktor Krum. _

**'That's a terrible way to think, terrible, but good. Brilliant even.' **Arsenio says out of nowhere. I trip over my own feet due to the break in concentration .

'Are you ok?' Viktor asks worriedly, shoving dancing people out of his way.

'Yeah, yeah. I'm fine.' I say, waving him off. I grip his shoulders again and begins leading, only a tad bit slower this time.

**'Are you crazy? I almost got stampeded by a herd of dancing people!' **I mental yell at my brother. But in return, I only hear both my brother's laughing at me.

**'Ah, it's fine Hermione. The waltz is actually almost over.' **Malik informs me, but before I ask if he's telling the truth, the crystal orchestra plays the final note, letting it ring out. Viktor and I, along with everyone else, stops dancing to clap for the orchestra, who stands up and takes the compliment, and begins to play happy, fast paced dancing songs. I smile broadly, then say, 'I'll be right back, I'm going to go get some water.' And leave before he says anything else.

I walk over to the table, and feel a radiant smile spread over the cross of my face as I see bleach blonde hair standing at the table, getting a glass of water. I skip over to him, and smile at radiantly up and him. 'Hi Draco!' I exclaim happily.

He turns surprised, then when he sees who called his name, he smiles just as radiantly. 'Hermione!' he exclaims happily. He puts his cup down and hugs me, quickly. 'How are yo-.' He cuts himself off midsentence. 'Hermione, you're, you're wearing them!' He exclaims, his voiced laced with nothing but surprise and admiration.

'Yeah, why wouldn't I? Two reasons, one, they are gorgeous. Two, you sent them to me.' I answer, blushing, and feeling the butterflies in my stomach flutter around wildly. 'I love them Draco, thank you.' I say more quietly, turning up to him and giving him a small kiss on the cheek. It's a good thing everyone else is too busy dancing, or they would have been all over the two of us.

He blushes profusely. 'I'm, I'm glad you liked them. You look, amazing Hermione. I really can't find the right word to describe you right now. To me, you look like an angel, hell, the Queen of Angels.' Draco says, looking me right in the eye.

I smile, hugging him again. 'You truly are the best Draco.' He hugs me back, then looks over my shoulder and frowns slightly. 'Viktor's waiting for you.' He sighs, letting go of me. I immediately feel the loss of his presence, and I'm actually dreading going back to Viktor. 'Argh, fine. Can we hang out tomorrow? By the lake?' I ask him.

'I wouldn't miss it for the world.' He says smiling, before walking away. I look after his retreating figure for a little while longer before going back to Viktor.

'Come Mione, let's dance.' Viktor says, grabbing my hand and pull me out to dance floor, as the Weird Sisters start to play on stage.

After about two and a half hours of dancing, I'm tired of dancing and a fight my way through jumping, dancing crowd, with Viktor right on my tail. I'm beaming from the high of dancing for two and a half hours, and it's really getting to me. I'm laughing the whole way out.

'Mione, do you want something to drink?' Viktor asks me.

'Sure, sure!' I say, not exactly hearing what he says. He walks off, and I spin in place, putting my hands on my head, trying to get it to stop spinning. I see Harry, Pavarti, Ron, and Padma sulking on a nearby table. I skip over to them, my glimmering gold dress trailing behind me. But, Pavarti gets invited to something before I get there, and Padma leaves, so I just skip over to them, unable to keep the smile off my face.

'Hey, Viktor went off to go get us some drinks, do you want to join us?' I ask happily.

Ron looks up at me, looking extremely agitated, while Harry just rolled his eyes at Ron. It's clear, even in my wound up mind, that they didn't forgive each other while sitting there. 'No, I don't want to go join you and _Viktor_.' Ron says, sarcastically.

This zaps the good mood right out of me. 'What? You don't want to join us?' I ask him.

Before Ron has any chance to respond, Harry just gets up and leaves. Smart on his part. The atmosphere around the table got instantly tense. 'I don't want to go dancing off with the enemy.' He says, scoffing me off.

'The enemy?' I say, sounding surprised and ticked off. 'The whole point of this tournament is for an international corporation, to make friends.' I say.

Ron just scoffs me off again, then gets up to leave, which only infuriated me even further. 'I thought you said you were ok with this!' I yell at him, not caring who is listening to me.

'Yeah, I WAS, until you decided to mold yourself into him while dancing!' he yells back, sounding just as angered.

That blows up my patience that Ron lit 5 minutes before. 'Well, if you didn't want me to go with him, then you should have asked me out before someone else did, and NOT as a last resort!' I yell, my voice cracking in anger, depression, and sadness, while my eyes hold a look of pure anger, glaring white hot daggers into him.

Harry comes out of nowhere, and I just wanted something else to me mad at. 'And where have YOU been?' I yell at him. Harry looks lost, really lost. He just gives Ron a confused look, and Ron grabs Harry out of my reach and pulls him out of the scene, telling something to Harry.

'You are a complete ARSE Ronald Weasley!' I scream at his retreating figure. Once I send the last of my glares at him, I collapse onto the stairs, ripping Ginny's golden shoes off, and let my head fall into my hands. The sobs come wave after wave, racking over my body. I cry, almost silently to myself. I almost didn't hear someone walk up to me, until they gently grab my arm, and lead me somewhere. I can't tell where, because my eyes are too filled with tears. Whoever grabbed my arm is walking ahead of me.

'W-who are you?' I whisper, asking as loud as I can before another wave of tears rack over me.

'Shhh… it's ok Hermione.' He tells me, but I still don't know who it is. Actually, the only thing I do know, is that we are outside, because I feel the gentle breeze outside, and the grass brush against my legs. After about nothing but walking through the grass, whoever lead me here sets me down on something hard. I clear my eyes, and notice that I'm sitting on a rock, a granite rock.

'W-wait…' I trail off, looking around for the guy that brought me here, and behind me, I see an extremely concerned looking Draco. 'Draco…' I say, walking, almost collapsing into his open arms, and let the sobs over take me once again.

'Hermione, shh, just let it out.' He instructs gently. He walks me over to the rock, and sits me down, with him sitting down right next to me, putting his arm around me, letting me cry onto his shoulder. 'Just calm down Hermione, it's alright, you're ok.' He whispers to me. I just sit there, cradled in his arms, trying to calm myself down.

After about half an hour, I'm calmed down enough to not cry, but I'm still clutching onto Draco like a lifeline.

'Hermione?' Draco asks, looking down on me with concern.

'Mhm?' I ask him.

'Are you ok now?' he asks, gently.

I don't answer right away, and after hesitating, I answer, 'Yeah, thanks to you Draco.' I thank him, leaning my head up to gently kiss him on the cheek.

'You know, it tortures to see you cry. What made you so upset in the first place?' he asks, semi curiously.

'It was Ron.' I answer simply. I'm glad he doesn't ask how, but I feel him tense up. 'Draco?' I ask him, sitting up to look at him.

'That arse…' he trails off, his voice laced with anger.

'Draco, it's fine, I'm fine.' I say, trying to calm him down, but it's useless.

'No, Hermione!' he says, trying his best to keep his voice calm. 'If that arse claims that he loves you, like I do, then he has no right to make you cry like that! He should be treating you like you're the only thing that keeps him to this earth!' he says, sounding distressed.

I do hear what he says, but something catches my attention. 'You, you love me?' I ask him curiously. He immediately backtracks, and blushes profusely. 'Hell, did I say that out loud?' he asks quietly.

'Yeah, you did.' I laugh quietly. That makes him smile, knowing that I'm not upset anymore.

'Well, that's beside the point. And see? If he loves you, he should be striving to make you laugh and smile, like I did.' He says, smiling.

I smile back at him, then he stands up, offering his hand out. 'Shall we?' he asks, smiling down at me.

'We shall.' I say, taking his hand, not knowing exactly what he is talking about. He stands me up, then takes his wand out of his pocket, and with the flick of his wand, a slow waltz begins to float out of the air.

I look back at him, and he is holding his arms open, smiling madly at me. I laugh at him, then walk into his arms, laughing.

'May I have this dance, Hermione?' he asks, holding me close.

I don't even have to answer, he just begins to lead me, under the willow. I smile up and him, and he just mirrors my look, but maybe about twenty times more radiant. He looks as if he could stand there forever, and he would be the happiest person alive.

**DRACO'S POV**

Hermione smiles up at me, and I'm pretty sure that my heart swelled to the size of the full moon out tonight. She's the only person that can do this to me. She's the first thing I think of in the morning, the last thing I think of before I go to sleep, and every moment in between. She's my sun, moon, and stars. She's my everything, and I'm only 14. But I'm pretty sure that she's the one.

'Draco?' I hear an angelic voice call to me.

I snap out of my trance and smile down on her. 'Yeah?' I ask her.

'Well, two things. One, you were staring at me for a pretty long time, and two, the sun's down. We should go inside.' She says. I laugh at her, because I know that I was staring into her eyes for a long time.

'I'm sorry, I was drowning in your eyes, and I was absolutely positively in love with this moment, my mine was all fogged up.' I answer, smiling and reluctantly let her go.

'Aw, thanks Draco, for everything.' She says to me, it sends my heart flying and my soul to Cloud 9. 'I don't think I would have made it through the night without what you did. I don't I can ever repay you.' She says, blushing in the dim light.

I offer my arm out to her. 'Come on Mione, little red head is probably looking for you.' I say. She smiles, which lifts my soaring heart even further.

'Alright, but I will see you tomorrow? With everyone else?' She asks, looping her arm in mine, and walking right next to me.

'Yeah, I will tell the Slytherins, you tell the Twins and Harry.' I say, but I let one name slip by accident, hoping she didn't hear it.

But her keen ears heard it. 'You want me to invite Harry? Really?' she asks excitedly. Damn it, she knows I can't resist her when she's ecstatic like that.

'Yeah, if it makes you happy.' I say, reaching the tunnel into the entrance of the castle.

'Oh, thank you Draco!' she says, jumping up and interlocking her arms around my neck. I lace my arms around her slim waist, and hug her. 'Anything for you.' I whisper in her ear. She lets me go, and I feel the instant loss of her warmth when she lets go. 'Alright, I'll see you tomorrow.' She says, unable to keep the grin off her face. I smile back at her, as she turns and heads for the Gryffindor common room, while I head in the other direction, towards the dungeon, into the Slytherin common room's direction.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot! [: J.K Rowling does. Also, see my page for a full list. **

**A/N: Thank MERLIN it's spring break! I CAN WRITE! Ok, enjoy this laid back chapter!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 19

The bright morning sun leaks through the window next to my bed. _Finally, I wake peacefully. _I muse to myself. I silently get up, noticing that no one else in room was up or awake yet. I quietly get dressed, in jeans and a t-shirt, and walk out of the dorm. I look over the common room, noting that no one was in there either; so I walk out the common room portrait, and into the empty hallway. _Hm, I suppose everyone else is so caught up in last night's events, I know I am. _I think to myself.

**'Yeah, we're caught up in last night's events too. What happened with you?' **Arsenio asks, invading my mind again.

**'Yeah Mione! What happened? Anything, **_**romantic?'**_ Malik asks, suggestively.

**'Funny.' **I say to them, as I hear them snickering. **'Hey, we're meeting by the lake today before winter break, want to come?' **I ask them. **'I pretty sure Harry is coming too.' **I add in.

**'Cool, we'll be there, what time?' **Malik says, sounding excited.

**'Oh, I'm pretty sure around 12, because the carriages to the train station leave at 1:30.' **I say.

**'Alright! We'll be there.' **Arsenio says, pulling out, with Malik pulling out straight after.

I smile to myself, then walk the rest of the way to the Great Hall, where I see Harry sitting by himself, eating his apple, and reading the _Daily Prophet. _

'Hey Harry!' I exclaim happily, taking an apple of my own and taking a huge bite out of it.

'Hey Mione, what's up with you?' he asks, looking away from the Prophet.

'Nothing much, but can I ask you something?' I ask him.

He laughs at me, then says, 'Well besides your question, what's the one you want to ask?'

'Remember Malik? He wants to know if you want to hang out again by the lake. Everyone else is going to be there.' I say, cringing slightly, remembering what I had to do to him last time.

'Yeah sure, and what do you mean by everyone else?' he asks curiously.

'Uh, the Slytherins, Malfoy, Zabini, Parkinson…' I trail off, knowing he knows where I'm going with this.

'You can call them by their first names in front of me.' He says.

I give him a curious look. 'Really? What changed?' I ask.

'I'm not sure. They did explain why they acted the way you did while we were all leaving. So, I understand where they are coming from. Plus, they are all spies for Dumbledore, and their parents. That's pretty brilliant to me.' He answers.

'That's amazing Harry!' I exclaim, happy.

'What time?' he asks, taking another bite of his apple.

'12, because we are all going home for Winter Break.' I answer.

'Cool, well, it's 11:30 now.' He answers.

My eyes widen. 'Really? Why isn't anyone else up yet?' I ask.

Harry shrugs. 'I just thought that it was because of the Yule Ball last night. Most of the Gryffindor's stayed up really late.' He answers.

'Wow, ok. Well, want to head over now?' I ask.

'Sure. Taking my apple.' He says, grabbing another one and putting it in his pocket.

I laugh at him. 'Almost every time I ask you to go somewhere, you always take those apples with you. I'm being replaced.' I joke in mock hurt.

'Oi! Don't mock my apple addiction! Apples are amazing.' He says, scoffing me off by taking a huge bite of his apple.

'Well, I'm taking a banana and a pear.' I say, grabbing a banana and a pear and putting it in my pocket, while taking another bite out of my apple.

'Now I'M being replaced.' Harry joked back with me. We head out of the Great Hall, cracking jokes out of each other the whole way.

We walk out into the grounds, and head towards the lake. Harry chucks his first apple core into the bush, and I throw mine to a squirrel nearby.

'Hm, I really haven't seen squirrels around here before.' I muse.

'Yeah I know. You would think they would be devoured by some magical beast out here.' Harry jokes again.

'You would think so.' I agree. We walk over to the willow by the lake, and take out our other piece of fruit. Him another apple and me, my pear. We walk over to the rock, to see everyone else there, chilling in their places, wrapped in their cloaks and hats.

'Ah, you are here!' Pansy exclaims, getting up to hug us.

'Now spill missy. I want to hear all out your dream date with Viktor!' Astoria squeals. I sigh, and lead the two girls over to my spot, where Draco was waiting for me. He opens his arms out, and I go in and sit in them, leaning on the tree.

'Ok, where do you want me to start?' I ask them.

They think about what they want to know. 'I just wanna hear about the whole thing.' Pansy says, coming to her conclusion. Astoria nods in agreement.

'Ok, well, there isn't much to it. He was a bit rough, and rushed, but he was a gentlemen. But then Ron got really jealous, so I got really upset, so Draco came and rescued me.' I say, then pause, thinking about something. 'Oh Merlin!' I exclaim, realizing something. Everyone else looks at me expectantly.

'I didn't go back to Viktor after I stormed off! Oh, I wonder what he thought of that, oh I feel so bad….' I trail off, because the guys around me burst into a fit of laughter, all except Harry and Blaise, who just smirk at everyone else's reaction.

'Oh MAN, that's priceless! I wish I could have seen his face!' Theo exclaims, trying to push his words out through his laughter.

'That's hilarious! I bet he was so depressed, I wish I could have been there to rub it further into his face!' Draco says, laughing. I give him that look, and it shuts him up immediately. 'What?' he asks innocently.

'You were comforting me!' I exclaim, slapping them over the shoulder.

He calms down and slings his arm over me. 'Yeah, I know. Comforting you will always win over rubbing sweet revenge in Krum's face any day.' He answers. 'Plus, I live to make you smile, so, I fulfilled yesterday's goal.' He adds compassionately.

That, of course, makes me smile. I blush, and turn away. Pansy and Astoria exchange one look, smirk at each other, then return to their positions.

Draco leans over, and whispers in my ear, 'You look absolutely beautiful when you blush you know, there's no need to hide it.'

I smile once again, as the blush creeps back onto my face. I lean back onto Draco, and look out at the rest of them. 'Theo, who did you go with?' I ask curiously.

Theo blushes slightly. 'Oh, I asked Hazel Matz, she's a Beauxbatons girl, she's in our year, and she's absolutely amazing.' Theo answers, blushing with every word he says.

'Theo's got it bad!' Astoria jokes, drawing out the word bad, shoving him aside.

'Shut up.' Theo mutters, embarrassed.

'Oh, I'm Theo; I'm totally head over heels in love with haaaazzzzeeellll mmaaatttzzz! All I want to do is kkkiiiissssss her! I dream about her all night, and think about her all day!' Draco exaggerates, mocking Theo.

'Shut up, I'm not like that…' Theo mutters, crossing his arms and turns away.

We all burst out laughing, including Harry, who seems to be warming up to the Slytherins every moment we spend together.

'Well, you were like that when you were in love with Hermione.' Astoria said, smirking.

Harry gave her a weird look. 'Theo? You were in love with Mione?' he asks curiously.

'I was, and still kind of am, but, I know that I've got stiff competition with her, and Hazel is amazing, so, I'm moving on, while falling all over again.' He answers.

'So I'm not amazing anymore?' I say, sounding offended, but I know that everyone else took it as a joke.

'No no, you still are, beyond amazing actually, but, you've got someone who has been in love with you f.o.r.e.v.e.r.' Theo reassures me, while cracking a joke at the same time.

I can tell Harry is about to ask who is, but I cut him off before he has time to say anything. 'Hey, does anyone know what time it is?' I ask, starting to shiver, due to the lovely snow that began to fall. Draco wraps his arm around me to warm me up.

'Um, it's one. Don't the carriages to the train station leave at 1:30?' Blaise answers.

'Yeah, come on guys.' Pansy says, standing up, waiting for everyone else to follow. We all stand up, bundled in our cloaks, and begin walking towards the castle.

The snow begins to fall heavier and heavier, to the point where we could barely see three meters out if front of us.

'Thank Merlin that we were close to the castle!' I say, laughing, trying to shake the snowflakes out of my hair. Draco helps by gently brushing them out. I smile up at him in thanks, then turn back to the group.

'Why?' Theo asks me curiously.

'Well, if we weren't, there is a really good chance we would have begun to walk in circles. It's actually been proven, that it is impossible for a human to walk in a straight line blindfolded.' I answer. Theo rolls his eyes at me, amused.

'Only you would know that Mione.' He muses. I roll my eyes back at him, then turn back to everyone else. 'Well, the carriages leave soon. Anyone staying?' I ask.

Only Harry raises his hand. 'I am. There is no way in hell that you will make me go back to the Dursely's more than I have to.' He scoffs me off. 'I'll see you guys later. Have fun back home.' He says, walking away, towards the Gryffindor common room, while the rest of us head the other way, towards the front door to Hogwarts, where the carriages were waiting.

'Follow my lead…' I whisper under my breath. I see them nod, but just barely.

'Would you quit following me Malfoy?' I yell at him, turning on him.

He smirks, then states back calmly, ' I can walk wherever I want, you can't tell me what to do, filthy little mudblood.' He spats at me.

'Get out of our way, filth!' Pansy screeches, backing away from me. Theo pushes me to the ground, gently, but enough to make it look believable. I fall to the ground, landing on my hands and knees, watching my friends stride off to the carriages, laughing maliciously. I roll my eyes at their acts, and make my way to an empty carriage and wait.

After about a half hour of mind numbing boredom listening to Ginny and Pavarti talk, the carriages finally arrived at the train station. I opened the door to the carriage and rush to the train station, having enough fashion talk for one year.

'Had enough of us?' Ginny says, skipping up to me.

'Just enough of your fashion talk.' I answer, annoyed. Ginny laughs at me, then drags me onto the train, into an empty room. I notice Draco and his crew, with my brothers, walk by, almost unwillingly, and I know the feeling. No offense to my best friend of all time, but I would rather be with my brothers.

'Mione?' Ginny asks, snapping me out of my trance.

'What?' I ask, looking away from the window.

But before Ginny gets to ask, we hear a knocking on the glass. We both turn around to see Draco Arsenio, and Malik leaning against the door frame, smirking. Ginny gets up, and opens the door, looking suspicious. 'What do you want?' she snaps.

Malik takes this. 'We need Granger, Professor Snape wants to see her for a moment.' He says, smirking at Ginny.

Ginny glares at him, then looks at me. 'They want you to go see Snape, do you want to go?' she asks me.

I shrug. 'Sure, I suppose so. I'll see you later.' I say, walking out with my brothers and Draco, shutting the door behind me.

'So, why does Father need to see me?' I ask, half knowing that they are joking.

'He doesn't. He's probably waiting at the station to pick us up. We just wanted to talk to you.' Malik says, hugging me.

I hug him back. 'Aw, I wanted to talk to you too. But wait, where are we going to talk? This bus is crawling with other students.'

'We've got that covered. Your Father gave us permission to privately use the head room, because none of the Heads are riding the train home. So, we get the caboose!' Arsenio says excitedly.

I laugh at their excitement. 'Do I really mean that much to you guys?' I ask.

They look at me, dumbfound. 'Really? What kind of ridiculous question is that? You're our sister, and Draco's love! Of course you mean a lot to us!' Malik says, opening the door open for us. I see everyone else there, except Crabbe and Goyle.

'Hey, where are Crabbe and Goyle?' I ask.

'They picked their cabin closet to the food trolley.' Pansy answers, scoffing them off. I laugh, and take my seat next to Draco.

I feel the train slowly begin to slow down. 'I think we are there.' I state.

Everyone else quiets down. 'Yeah, we are.' Theo agrees.

The cabin quiets down, then my face lights up. 'Do you think that you guys could come over during Christmas break?' I ask excitedly.

'Yeah, I can, what about you guys?' Draco says, turning to everyone else.

'I can.' Theo says.

Everyone else agrees. 'Awesome, what about Christmas day? We could invite all the families over for dinner!' I exclaim.

'Yeah, I'm pretty sure Father would say yes to that.' Malik says.

'Yeah, and even if he doesn't Mione can melt his heart with her eyes.' Arsenio jokes.

Everyone laughs, then gets up, sensing that the train has come to a full stop. 'See you guys Christmas day!' Theo says, getting off the train first, heading over to his parents.

'Yeah, I will too. Bye Snape's!' Pansy says, heading over to her parents.

We all exchange our goodbyes, then I head in the opposite direction then my brothers, but meet up in the same place, near the back of the train station.

'Hey, could you change me back?' I ask Malik. He nods, then takes his wand out, then waves it over me, muttering the counter charm, and I'm transformed back to my normal Snape self, with my long, black hair in a ponytail, and I got a little taller, then I smile. 'Thanks.' I say.

My Father comes out of the shadows. 'Ah, there you three are. Come, let's go. Grab onto my arm.' He says, holding out his arm. We all put one hand on his arm, then he apparates out.

I land roughly on my knees, while my brother's and Father look over me, smirking.

'Just can't stay on our feet, can you?' my Father asks, smirking.

I stick my tongue out to them, then run inside, not being able to wait any longer to get home. I hold my arms out, ready to push the door open, but I didn't realize that my Father's house elf was going to open the door. I trip over the doorstep, and fall flat on my face, again. This time, my sister is looking down on me, mirroring my Father and brother's smirk.

'Gravity got you down?' she asks, helping me up.

'Yeah, and that house elf.' I say jokingly. My Father and brother's walk through the door, and shut it behind me. Then something strikes me. 'Hey, Ara?' I ask her. She looks at me, expecting me to go on. 'I thought you were at Hogwarts, how are you here?' I ask her.

'Oh, well, I wrote Father a letter saying that my headmaster wanted me back to my school, because my friend fell off a dragon, and she wanted me to help calm her. She was burned really badly.' She answers.

'Oh, ok. So, do you get to come back?' I ask her.

She sighs, then shakes her head. 'Sadly, no, I don't. My best friend wanted me to stay. Plus, my Quidditch team needed me.' She adds, smirking.

'Oh fine fine. Come on, let's go! Oh wait, hold on. Father?' I ask, turning to him.

'Yes?' he answers, waiting for my question.

'Do you think that we could invite Draco, Theo, Pansy, Blaise, and Astoria's families over for Christmas?' I ask him.

He thinks about him for a moment, then nods. 'Sure. Would around six be ok?' he asks me.

'Yeah, I would just have to write to them.' I say. 'Hey, I'll meet you three in the game room ok?' I ask, gesturing to the three of them.

'Yeah sure! Hey Ara, I'll beat you there!' Malik and Arsenio say simultaneously, then simultaneously break into a run towards the game room, with Ara right on their tail. I walk in the other direction, towards the library. I walk into the library, and pull out five pieces of parchment. I dip my quill into the ink, and begin writing.

Dear Draco,

My Father said yes! What about your parents?

-Hermione

I repeat the same letter, only addressed to everyone else. I walk over to Mia, by jet black owl, and begin to tie the letters to her leg. 'Ok, there are letters addressed to Draco, Theo, Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria. Could you deliver these for me?' I ask her, stroking her beak. She pecks my finger affectionately, then takes off. I decide to wait, just in case one returns their letter. So, since I'm in a library, I decide to read any one of the books in here. I walk up to one of the shelves, and pick a random book off the shelf, which reads, " Omens: What to Expect." I open up to a random page, and begin reading. But, shortly after, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I look up, and see two owls, Mia, and a brilliant golden brown eagle owl, looking at me with bright blue eyes, sticking its leg out.

'Oh, and who are you from?' I ask, not expecting an answer. I untie the letter, and both owls fly over to my desk, perching themselves on my chair. I open the letter, and read the short note.

Mione,

I can come, my parents are coming too. What time?'

-Draco

I walk back over to my desk, and write Draco his response, and feed his owl. Once I finish my letter, I tie Draco's response to his owl's leg, and the owl takes off. But as soon as Draco's owl left, I fluffy little brown owl flies through the open window, and perches itself on my chair, holding its tiny little leg out. I untie the letter, and read it.

Hermione,

I can come! What time would we need to come over?'

-Pansy

I respond to her letter, and tie it to her owl's leg, and watch her little owl fly off. Three more owls make their way to my window, Theo's brown and white spotted owl, Blaise's fierce looking Scops owl, and Astoria's small brown elf owl. I quickly scan over the letters, noting that they can all come, then write three separate responses, and tie them to the owls to whom they belong, and watch them fly off. Once they are out of sight, I run down the hallway, in search of my Father.

'Father! Father!' I yell, running down the hallway.

I see him, sitting in the family room, reading. 'Father!' I say, walking up to him.

'Yes?' he asks, not looking up from his book.

'Everyone can come.' I inform him. He looks up. 'Alright. I'll tell the house elves to start preparing.' He says, looking back to his book. I smile at him, then run towards the direction of the game room, where I meet Malik, Arsenio, and Ara, who are caught up in a heated battle.

'So, where do I come it?' I ask, smirking.

**A/N: Wow, this chapter was 3 pages shorter than normal, sorry guys!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot, and my OC's. JK Rowling owns it all, and please visit my page for a full list. **

**A/N: Gotta love Spring Break, who doesn't? But sadly, it has come to an end, and on with testing. Anyway, I really don't have much to say, besides the normal, beta readers are always appreciated, even though I've got two boss beta readers, the more the better right? And the normal reviews, please, I LIVE off reviews! [: Jk, but I still want them. **

**Without further ado, let's begin! Enjoy chapter 20!**

***Please note this! – Are you reading? Because if you're not, and I get a review saying this is the weirdest chapter by far, it's not gonna be my fault, this is a warning. OK, so, this is the beginning of the supernatural abilities of the triplets. THIS IS A WARNING! I really don't want to read reviews saying that I shouldn't have. **

***** ANOTHER IMPORTANT NOTE! Hey, any 'Kickin It' fans out there? I just read an amazing story by the most epic ninja of all, ****EpicNinja8. ****I recommend it highly. H.I.G.H.L.Y. Oh, got your attention? The name of the story is called ****Spring Break. ****Wanna know another reason why you should read it? Because it was JUST spring break, or at least for me. So, READ IT! School work can wait. [: I mean come on, Kim, Jack, and Ninjas overrule school work any day. **

**NOW, let Chapter 20 commence! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 20

'Come on Father! Let's go, let's go!' I squeal, tugging on my Father's arm, trying to get him to move.

'Can you tell me again why you want to do the tree now?' my Father asks me, walking with me to the storage room.

I sigh, loudly. 'Because!' I draw out. 'This is the first year ever that I get to put up the Christmas tree with my real family! Come on, please!' I beg him, giving him that look I know he can't say no to.

I'm rewarded when he sighs. 'Oh, alright. Go get your brothers and sister. We'll do it now.' He says, walking away from me, and heading over to the storage room.

I grin, then dash off to find my siblings, so I go to the first place where I think they would be, in the game room. I round the corner, and make my way to the game room, and open the door, expecting to see them there. 'Hey! Guys, come o-' I cut off, noting that they aren't there. Puzzled, I shut the door, then think about where else they would be. I make my way to the family room, looking out the big window, trying to think.

**'Hey, where are you guys? I have to ask you two something' **I ask my brothers, sensing that their minds are open. But before I get a response, I jump back in surprise as I see a black blur fly down from the top of the window, hitting the ground with a hard, sickening crunch.

Panic-stricken, I scream, and run outside, shoving the door open, and running over to my crippled brother. 'Malik, Malik! Are you ok?' I scream desperately and terrified, shaking him gently. Arsenio and Ara fly out of nowhere, landing next to me, worried as well.

'Yeah, I'm, I'm fine.' Malik grunts, trying to prop himself up on his shoulder, but fails, and falls back down on his back, moaning in pain.

'What happened Malik? You've never fallen off your broom before!' Ara exclaimed, helping Arsenio and I prop Malik up.

I look away guiltily, not wanting to answer, but Arsenio answers. 'Mione was asking where we were. It knocked us out of concentration, and I admit, the bludgers didn't help either. I was about to fall off too.' Arsenio admits, helping Malik up on his shoulder.

I finally find my tongue, and when I do, I immediately feel the guilt, pain, and regret flood through me. 'I'm so sorry Malik!' I cry in agony, my voice cracking.

He looks at me sympathetically. 'Mione, its fine. It's not your fault I fell off.' He says, hobbling by his brother's side.

'Yes it is! If I didn't say anything to you guys, you wouldn't have nearly died! I'm the reason you lost concentration! Arsenio said so himself!' I cry desperately, the tears beginning to spring from my eyes as we enter the family room. Ara dashed away from the room, to go get Father, while Arsenio sets Malik down on the couch, and I collapse to the floor next to him, collapsing in overwhelming grief.

'Come here, Mione.' Malik says, propping himself up, gesturing for me to come sit next to him. I cautiously walk over to him, placing myself a bit further away from him than he implied. He sighed, and covered the rest of the distance himself. He wraps his arms around me, comforting me, when I know that it should be the other way around. 'Mione, I'm ok you know. I'm going to survive, I just fell off my broom. I bet that happens all the time at your school. I know, Harry told me about what happened to him last year. And besides, it just my right arm and leg, and torso that hurt' He says, trying to get me to calm down, but failing in doing so.

But it didn't matter. I went into much deeper sense of shock when he said the word 'survive,' and everything else he said turned into a blur. 'Oh Merlin… the tournament! What are you going to do? You're going to be at a disadvantage! What if you need that arm, or leg? I might have led to your doom! Oh, Malik, I'm so sorry!' I say, breaking down once again, the guilt, shock, and grief overwhelm me.

'Mione, I think you forgot one important thing.' Arsenio says, coming over to hug me.

I give him as much of a curious look as I can, without sending myself into another wave of tears.

'We're wizards.' Malik jokes, using what I said against him. I turn to look at him, to see him smiling gently at him, but he winces, obviously in a lot of pain.

The emotions I were overpowering me before, grief; shock; and guilt, were immediately replaced with extreme embarrassment. I felt my face get burn, as I look away. I heard my brothers laugh at me, which only lead to my further embarrassment. I felt my Malik hug me. 'See? You were just overreacting.'

'Well, well, overreacting fogs your judgment. When I see my brother fall like, 500 meters out of the sky, the fact that I'm a witch isn't the first thing I think about.' I apologize.

'There's no need to apologize, it isn't your fault.' Malik says, wincing again in pain.

'Yeah, it kinda was…' Arsenio trails off, trying to ease the tension, sensing that I was calmed down.

Malik's expression hardened, as he slapped his brother over the shoulder, but I waved him off. 'It's fine. I'm fine now knowing that you are going to survive.' I say.

My Father rushes into the room, followed quickly by Ara. My Father pulls his wand out of his robe, and muttered a few incantations, and the relief was obvious. My Father, finishes, and looks up and Malik. 'How do you feel?' he asks.

'The pain was practically leeched out of my arm and leg, but my torso is still is kinda sore.' He answers, his face relaxing.

'Well that's because you landed on your arm and leg, and those were then shoved into your torso.' Ara says smartly, but you could tell that she too was relieved that her brother was ok.

We all sat in a comfortable silence, until Malik broke it. 'Mione? What did you want to ask us?'

I stared at him confused. 'Huh?' I ask.

'Before I fell, was there something you wanted to ask?' he clarifies.

'Oh! That's right! I remember!' I exclaim, my face brightening up, all other emotions forgotten, besides pure excitement. 'I convinced Father to let us put the tree up today! Can we do it together? Please please please?' I beg, like a child, using my puppy dog eyes on my brothers, knowing that they can't resist and say no either.

'Anything for you Mione.' Malik says, standing up without pain, with a bright smile on his face.

Arsenio and Ara stood up as well, looking extremely excited. 'Sure! It would be the first time in about 8 or 9 years.' Arsenio says.

I squeal happily! 'Well come on! Let's go get the tree!'

'Already taken care of.' My Father says. He snaps his finger, and one of his house elves pops in with the large, leafy pine tree, then pops away.

'I'm going to go get my wand.' Malik says, followed by Arsenio and Ara, but I stop them.

'Whoa whoa, no. We're going to do this the muggle way.' I say, stopping them.

They turned, and looked at me with sort of a mental look. 'The muggle way? Are you mental?' Ara says, gobsmacked.

'No, I'm not mental! Come on, it's fun!' I say, pleading with my family. I hear them all sigh, which means they all gave in. Ha, being the youngest has its perks, and getting what you want is defiantly one of the best ones.

'Alright, how do we do this?' Arsenio asks, walking back over to me.

'Well, first, we need ornaments.' I state, noting that there weren't any laying around. I can tell that my Father is about to snap his fingers, and make the house elves bring it, but I stop him. 'Nope! Muggle Experience.' I state, as I begin to walk towards the storage room, with my reluctant family following me.

I open the door, and scan for some Christmas ornaments, then my face lights up when I see them in the back. I pass them down to my family. 'Here you go!' I say, in an overjoyed voice, which was rewarded with the reluctant glares of the rest of my family.

I grab the rest of the boxes, and shut the door with my foot. I walk back to the family room, and set down my boxes. 'Ok, do you want to start with the garland or the ornaments?' I ask them. None of them answer, so I add, 'Whether you like it or not, we are going to Christmas-ify this whole house. We are just starting with the tree.' I state, getting frustrated with my family, for not being in the spirit.

'Alright Mione, let's start with the garland.' Malik says, getting up and walking towards me, but he stops. 'Mione?' he asks me.

I turn and look at him. 'Yeah?' I ask him.

'How are we going to get that garland all the way up to the top of that tree? The bloody thing is huge!' he states, grabbing the garland with his hands, looking up to the top of the tree. Arsenio finally gave in, and walked over to help Malik and I get the garland out of the box.

'A ladder?' I say in an obvious voice, actually hoping this family owns one.

My Father leaves the room momentarily, then comes back into the room, levitating a rusty looking ladder into the room. 'Is this ok?' he asks.

'It's fine, can you prop it up near the tree?' I ask him, unwinding some more garlands with the help of my sister. We stretch it out, then I hold out one end. 'Who wants to put it on?' I ask them, grinning.

They all give me wary glances, before Malik raises his hand in the air. 'Sure, why not have another chance at cheating death.' He says, taking the end of the garland, and starts to climb up the ladder. He carefully puts the garland at the top of the tree, then winds down, till he climbs further and further down the ladder. He gently wraps the remainder of the garland around the tree, then looks at me, I guess for approval.

'Is that ok Mione?' he asks me, gesturing to his work.

'Why do you need my opinion?' I ask him curiously.

'Well, it's your first Christmas with us, I assumed we were going to do it your way.' He answers, smiling.

I roll my eyes at him goodheartedly, then reach for the sparkling glass ornaments. 'Ok, now lets hang these!' I exclaim, handing everyone a box.

'How?' Arsenio asks me.

'Well, with my Muggle parents, we would section off the tree, I would get the top, my mom would get the middle, and my Father would get the bottom.' I answer, adding in some back ground.

'I call the top!' Malik says, running up the ladder, and begins to hang some of his ornaments.

'I'll take the middle!' Arsenio calls, then runs over to the tree, standing on his tip-toes to reach the upper half.

'You and me will split the bottom?' Ara suggests.

'Sure, are you just going to supervise Father?' I ask him.

'Yes, yes I am. Also, I'm going to go get us some hot chocolate. And to be in the spirit of things, I'll try and make it myself.' He says, starting to leave.

'Oh man! I want to see this…' Malik trails off, putting more of his on, longing to watch his Father make anything that isn't potions.

'It's not every day that Father makes anything…' Arsenio trails off as well, wishing that he could watch.

My Father turns around, giving the twins that You-best-be-shutting-your-face-or-you-won't-get-any look, and says, 'You best be shutting your face or you won't get any.' He smirks.

'Funny, I got that from your eyes.' I say, joining in, making everyone else laugh, and knowing that is what they were thinking too.

'Watch it missy. You're the reason I'm doing this in the first place.' He says, smirking at me, then leaves for the kitchen.

We all laugh at him, then turn back to our ornaments. 'Do you guys remember what Christmas was like when Mother was around?' I ask them suddenly.

They all give me a strange look. 'Why do you ask?' Ara asks me, curious.

'I don't know, I mean, I literally remember nothing of you guys, maybe Draco's Father hit me with a memory charm for good precaution. I want to know what it was like for us.' I answer them.

They all pause, deep in thought. I can't blame them. Mother has been dead for over 9 years. Ara's face finally lights up. 'I remember! We would do this exactly! We would decorate the house the muggle way! And then we would have a giant Christmas day breakfast, with multi-colored pancakes, muffins, and milk. After, we would go and open presents, then invite all of our friends over. It was a ton of fun, until Snake-face Moldy arse came and ruined everything.' Ara spat out the last bit.

I smile, happy to know that I'm more like my mother than I thought. I really wish I got the chance to meet her. My face drops in sorrow for a moment, then springs back up into a smile, but my brother's catch it.

'Why the glum face Mione?' Arsenio asks, hanging up the last bit of his ornaments, then walking over to where Ara and I were sitting. Malik finishes his up, then joins us as well.

'It's nothing, I just wish I actually a real chance to meet her. I don't remember anything.' I whisper, dejected.

'It's alright, she's still watching over you. And you know, with your glamour off, you look just like her, only a tad smaller.' Arsenio jokes, messing my hair up. I smile back up at him, then look up towards the noise coming from the hallway. My Father appears, with 5 mugs of hot chocolate, still steaming.

'And you all doubted me.' He says, smirking, handing us all a mug. I graciously take it, then bring it to my lips, sipping it. The warm, chocolate liquid soothes my insides, warming me up instantly. 'Mhm…' I let out before I can stop it, it tastes so good.

Clearly, my siblings were impressed too. 'Blimey Father, I didn't know you could do this!' Malik exclaims, taking larger gulps out of his mug.

'Yeah! Why don't you cook more often?' Arsenio asks, polishing his mug off, moaning sounds of satisfaction.

My Father shrugs, not answering us, then takes his own mug. We sit in comfortable silence, until we all clean off our own mugs.

'Now! Who's ready to finish this tree?' I ask, rejuvenated and ready to work again. I spring up, and wait for everyone else. 'Come on! We have to do the rest of the house too!' I squeal, yanking my sister off the floor. They all smile at me, the eagerly begin working once more.

After about six or seven more hours of working, the house is finally done. We all walk outside, in the cold, fluffy, fresh snow, and turn to face our house.

Glimmering in every window, small balls of light danced around the window sill. The house glimmered in the dim light of the moon, but almost sparkling, and glowing on its own. Outlining every corner on the house glimmered in red, green, white, and gold lights. The tall pine tree in our front yard was decorated like a giant tree, hanging giant plastic ornaments on the branches.

'Whoa, I don't think our house has ever looked that nice…' Malik commented in awe, looking up at our illuminated house.

'And it's all thanks to Mione, who brought back the old tradition.' Ara said, hugging me. I laughed, and hugged her back.

'Come on, let's go inside, it's nearly 11:30, and we have to go Christmas shopping tomorrow. This time next week, it's gonna be Christmas.' Arsenio says, walking back inside, with us at his tail.

We opened the solid oak door, and entered the decorated hallways, and walk up to the spiral staircase, and up to our rooms.

'I'll see you guys tomorrow!" I say to them, as they walk into their rooms.

'See you tomorrow Mione.' Arsenio says, smiling, and walking into his room.

'Night luv.' Malik says, smiling as well before walking into his room.

I smile at the two of them, then turn into my own room, and head towards the bathroom to take a quick shower before I go to bed.

_ I wake up, in my family room, unaware of how I got there. I sit up, and walk around, trying to figure out how I got there. But it all comes to me when I hear an unfamiliar voice call out to me. _

_ 'Hermione? Hermione dear, turn around.' A misty voice calls out to me from behind. Confused, I turn around, and I am met with an angelic looking woman, standing about 10 meters behind me. She had the same, raven black hair I did, and almost the same shade of violet eyes as mine. That's when it struck me, but I had to make sure. 'Mother?' I whisper, unsure of myself. _

_ I'm rewarded with her face lighting up, and she runs towards me, engulfing me in a hug. I'm struck, unable to react properly. Confusion, shock, and disbelief are all speeding through my mind. Hesitantly, I wrap my small arms around her. She lets go of me, and looks at me. 'Oh Mia, you are exactly how I remember you, only taller!' she jokes. I break a smile, and sit down on the couch, waiting for her to take my lead. She sits down across from me, and looks at me. _

_ I finally decide to ask what's on my mind. 'Um, Mother? I'm really sorry, but I don't remember you…' I trail of, the atmosphere suddenly becoming extremely awkward. I mean, how are you supposed to tell your own Mother you don't remember her? Lucky for me, she breaks into a sympathetic smile. _

_ 'Oh I know. You were so young. I'm just glad you are with your rightful family again. I've missed you so much.' She says, her eyes beginning to well up. I walk over to her and hug her. 'Mother… I'm sorry. Please don't cry. I've missed you too.' I say, letting her go, and sit next to her. _

_ 'You're right, I shouldn't cry. It's just, I miss you and your family more than anything. I would do anything, if I could spend just one more day with you guys.' She says, gathering herself up. Once she has herself under control again, she asks, 'How are the twins?' _

_ I laugh, knowing that was an attempt to break the ice. 'Oh, they're still rebellious and full of pranks still. They are amazing brothers.' I answer, laughing. _

_ She laughs too, then her face turns slightly more serious. 'And what about Ara? Is she doing ok?' she asks. _

_ 'Yeah, she still misses you, like everyone else, but I think she misses you a bit more than everyone else. And, she's got her Quidditch skills.' I say. _

_ My Mother breaks into a smile. 'That's good, and your Father?' she asks, almost anxiously. _

_ 'He's just glad all of his children are back.' I answer, jokingly. _

_My Mother smiles, then her face turns completely serious. 'Ok, but that's not why I'm here.' She says. That catches my full attention. I look up at her, curiously, waiting for her to continue. 'You know how your Father said that you and your brothers are connected, more than normal right?' she asks me. _

_ I nod. 'Yes, that is why Voldemort was after me.' I answer. _

_ 'Yes, well, it is time for you to tap into that power. The time to figure out what your power is, is strongest around Christmas time. Your Father knows, but tell your brothers. Just, you need to find your powers out before Voldemort finds out that you are back, and he's already getting suspicious. You might be a bigger target than Harry if he figures it out.' My Mother says seriously. _

_ That thought scares me, being a bigger target than Harry? For a normal person, they would just to go and destroy his closest followers, and I don't even think that will cut it. 'Alright Mother, do you think you could tell me what they are? So they are easier to find? And how did he get suspicious?' I ask her. _

_ Sadly, she shakes her head. 'I'm sorry darling, but I don't even know what they are. And as for his suspicion, I'm not sure. He just has a hunch that something has changed. And you must keep hidden, because if he finds out, your family isn't the only one in danger. Everyone else who was at our house the night I was killed, they are all in danger too.' She looks up at me, then hugs me. 'I must be going…' she trails off. _

_ That strikes something in my heart. 'No, wait! You can't go! There's so much I want to know, know about you! Who else is in trouble?' I ask, trying desperately to get her to stay._

_ 'Merry Christmas!' she says, before fading off into thin air. _

I wake up, with the sun glistening through my stained glass window, then something strikes me.

'It's Christmas Morning!' I exclaim, literally throwing the silk covers off of my body, then jump out of bed and run down the spiral stairs.

**'Get up get up! It's Christmas! And there's something I have to tell you two!' **I scream at my brothers, trying to wake them up.

**'Argh, can't Christmas and your news wait 5 minutes?' **Malik asks, trying to pull out, but I don't let him.

**'No, it can't! This is my first Christmas with my real family! And my news is crucial! Now get up, both of you!' **I yell at them excited.

I hear them moan loudly, and I hear Arsenio say, **'Only for you Mione, I'll get up.' **He says.

**'I will too, but only for you. You are one of the only people that I would get up at 8 in the morning for, that isn't school, and sometimes, I don't even do that!' **Malik adds. I wait in the middle of the spiral staircase, as I watch my brother's room doors slowly open, as they appear groggily out of the rooms, in their matching flannel, plaid sweats, and tight black t-shirts. I smile broadly, and run up to hug them at the top of the staircase. 'Merry Christmas!' I say, hugging them.

They hug me back. 'Merry Christmas Mione.' They say simultaneously. I let go of them, and let out an excited squeal.

'Come on come on!' I say, dragging them down the stairs. I can practically feel the excitement ooze out of me, and I think the twins can feel it too. They are just smirking at me, amused. 'What?' I ask them, stopping.

'We're practically _drowning _in your excitement.' Arsenio jokes, pretending to choke.

'It nearly knocked the wind out of us when we woke up this morning.' Malik added.

I rolled my eyes at them, then continued dragging them down the stairs.

'You know, the only reason we are letting you drag us down the stairs is because this is your first year with us.' Arsenio says, reaching the bottom of the stairs, and rubbing his red wrist.

'Christ! You've got one iron grip there Mione.' Malik says, mirroring his brother's movements, rubbing his own reddening wrist.

'Sorry! If I could control my excitement, I wou-, on second thought, no, I wouldn't.' I say, stopping midsentence.

I look up the spiral staircase to see Ara and Father emerge from their rooms. I squeal, and jump up and down in place, and waited for them to come down stairs. Ara got there first, so I ran up to her and engulfed her in a giant hug. 'Merry Christmas Ara!' I exclaim, beaming.

She laughed at me, hugging me back. "Merry Christmas Mione.'

My Father makes his way down the stairs, and hugs me. 'Merry Christmas.' He says to me.

'Merry Christmas Father.' I say, letting go of him, letting a huge smile over take my face. 'Come on! Let's go!' I say, making a bolt for the door, but my brother grabs my shirt and pulls me back.

'No no, not yet. Didn't you listen to Ara yesterday?' Arsenio asks, with an amused smirk on his face.

I give them a confused look, so Malik clarifies. 'We don't open any presents until we have our Christmas breakfast first.' He clarifies for me.

'Well what are you waiting for? Christmas isn't going to wait any longer!' I say, making a second bolt for the door, running in the direction of the kitchen, with the rest of my siblings at my feet.

I push the double doors open that lead into the kitchen, and I am met with a huge feast waiting for us on the island in the middle of the kitchen. A huge stack of festively colored waffles were stacked on top of one another to form a decent sized Christmas tree. It was decorated with syrup and brightly colored M&M's. Surrounding the tower, bacon and eggs scattered on plates, steamed. Cartons of orange juice and milk sat on the counter, waiting to be drunk. And finally, outlining the island, bowls of fruit bordered the whole island, with apples, bananas, pears, blueberries, strawberries, everything. Giddy, I grab the nearest plate and begin filling it with fruit, and waffles. I hear my family walk through the door, and they begin to laugh.

'You just couldn't wait, could you?' Malik asks, grabbing his own plate.

'No, I couldn't! The only other time I've seen this much food on one counter is at the Great Hall in Hogwarts! My muggle parents never made this much food! We would just normally eat some cereal then get right to the presents.' I tell him, walking over to the table to set my food down so I could go get some orange juice.

'Well, get used to this. We have something similar to this every year, only I've never seen the house elves go all out like this before. It must be for you.' Arsenio says, going to set his own food down.

'The house elves made this?' I ask them, taking a sip of my orange juice.

'Yeah, normally they would come and join us… I wonder where they are.' Ara questions, looking around for the little elves.

'You let the house elves eat with you?' I ask again, dumbstruck.

They all give ME a dumbstruck look. 'Well, yeah, of course they do.' Ara says.

'I thought you were all about house elf rights.' Malik says, looking at me strangely.

'No no, I meant that, I didn't know that all pureblood families did this, let the house elves eat with them.' I try and clarify, but their confused looks only intensify.

'Who told you that? All of our friends, the Malfoy's, Zabini's, Nott's, everyone, they all let their house elves eat with them.' Arsenio tells me.

It's my turn to look confused. 'Really? But, ah, nevermind. Do you all mind sitting down; there is something I should tell you.' I say, sitting down in my spot.

They all give me another confused look, then take their seats at the table.

'Sure Mione, what's the news?' Malik asks, taking a sip of his orange juice.

I take a deep breath, still trying to absorb the information myself. 'Well, I had a dream, and, well-' I trail off, trying to figure out how to phrase this.

'Spit it out women! Out with it!' Arsenio says, taking another sip of his own orange juice.

I take another deep breath. 'Ok, Mother visited me last night, and-'

Everyone that was drinking their orange juice spit it out, and gave me a bewildered look.

'What?' Arsenio asks, shocked, if that is even a good enough word to describe the look on his face.

'She came to you? What did she say?' My Father pipes up, looking extremely curious.

'Is she ok?' Ara asks desperately, trying to find out if her Mother is ok.

I'm overloaded with questions. 'Hey, hey! Come on! I have one mouth, that's how many questions I can answer at a time. And Ara, yes, she is ok. She misses us all, and she said she would give anything to spend at least one day with us, as a family. And Father, I'm going to get to that, but hold on.' I say, turning to my brothers.

'Malik, Arsenio, there's something Mother wanted me to tell the two of you. You know those "supernatural" powers that make us closer than any other triplet?' I ask them, making sure they know what I'm talking about before I tell them.

'Yeah, but we weren't able to tap into them, because you haven't been in our lives.' Arsenio says, waiting for me to continue.

'Yeah, Father told us about it when he was positive he found you.' Malik adds, waiting.

'Ok, well, Mother told me that the strongest time to try and figure out those powers is around Christmas time, because that's when the family is altogether.' I tell them.

'Oh Sweet! Did she tell you what they are?' Malik asks eagerly.

But I shake my head. 'No, she said she didn't know. And that's not all. Father…' I trail off, waiting for his attention. Hm, I feel very professor like.

'Listening.' He says, looking at me.

'Ok, and she told me, Voldemort has a hunch, about me.' I tell them. I swear on my own Mother's grave, the room turned about five shades darker. The atmosphere suddenly became very tense, and everyone was wearing looks of almost terror on their faces.

'What… how?' Malik asks weakly.

'I, she didn't tell me. She just said I have to stay hidden, because if I don't, we aren't going to be the only family in trouble.' I stammer, suddenly becoming very scared.

'You mean the Malfoy's, and the rest of them?' Father asks, trying to keep a calm face.

'Yeah, them too. Because Mr. Malfoy was supposed to dispose of me, but he didn't. Everyone else's parents were here too. So they were all in on it, so that means that they are all in trouble too.' I respond weakly.

Everyone is silent for a moment, then Arsenio breaks into a smile. 'Well sweet! We get awesome super powers! I hope I get to be like Spider-Man, and swing around from a web!' he jokes, attempting at defusing the tension.

'Dude, you can already do that. I would want to be Hulk, and smash Voldemort's snaky little head. Oh the sweet sensation of revenge…' Malik trails off, into his own little violent fantasy.

We all laugh, glad that the tension is gone, but the news isn't far from everyone's thought. 'Well come on! It's Christmas, and those presents are calling my name.' I say, digging into my waffles. Everyone else smiles at me, then starts to eat their own food.

And about 20 minutes later, everyone's hunger is satisfied. 'Alright, let's go!' I exclaim excitedly. I hop out of my seat, then rush over to the family room, with my brothers and sister at my heels.

The family room is glowing, brightly wrapped presents are scattered under the tree. I squeal, and sit down next to one of the presents labeled with my name. Malik, Arsenio, and Ara sit down near some of their presents, and we all wait for Father to come in.

He walks in moments later, then sits down on the couch, looking at us with an amused look. 'Well, what are you waiting for? You can start.' He says, turning us loose to the presents.

My hands immediately bolt for the nearest one, which was a small, thin, rectangular box. The sticker labeled on it says, From Arsenio, I found this in my Room. :) I laugh at my brother, then rip open the package.

Inside, was a picture of my mom and I, from when she was still alive from when I was four or five. I was sitting up on her lap, smiling up at her, and with her smiling down at me. Then we both turn, and wave at the camera. I smile down at the picture, then set it off to the side, searching for another present.

The nest one I pick up, is poorly wrapped, in the shape of another rectangle, but the present is heavy! I look for the tag, and it's hanging off the string, keeping the whole thing together. It reads, "Merry Christmas Hermione! I hope you like this, I mean, you talk about it all the time! My brother Charlie actually gave it to me. –Ron" I laugh at his card too, then set it aside, so I can see what he sent me. And what I see, shocks me to no belief. He sent me the original copy of the Dragon Manual! Holy Merlin, I can't believe he gave this to me! I just hope he likes a giant homemade muggle cake with muggle goods inside as a replacement for this wonderful book. My smile widens, and I set it aside as well, next to my picture of my Mother.

The next closest one, is from Ara, and I can practically guess what is inside. I mean, what else is shaped like a broom? I laugh quietly to myself, and open the gift. Inside, is a world class "Training Broom: Beginners." I shoot her a quick look, telling her I'm amused. She smiles back at me radiantly, before turning back to her own presents.

I reach to the next gift, and it's labeled from Harry. His present is hard and box like, geometrical. I open the box, and lift the card up. It says, "Here Hermione! Now you don't need to carry around your own ink!" Curious, I open the box, and lift up thee metal quill. In the box, the box says, "A Quill That NEVER Runs out Of Ink! Use for that Bookworm in your life!" Bookworm, that's why Harry got it. I roll my eyes, and put the quill back into the box, and set it aside.

I pick up another gift, and pick up the card. It reads, "From Malik, I thought you would like this, since your always worried about us. These help. –Malik" I open up the box, and I'm immediately blown away by what I see. Gently resting inside, is an opal locket, resting on a silver chain. I gently open the locket, and I see many colors swirling inside the mirror. Confused, I walk over to Malik, and sit next to him.

'Hey, what is this?' I ask him.

He looks up from his present, and looks at me, lovingly. 'Oh, Father gave those to Arsenio and I, when you were taken. They show anyone who is wearing it if someone they love is in trouble. Arsenio and I always wear ours.' Malik says, pulling his out of his shirt to show me. Arsenio looks up, and shows me his.

'Yeah, we've kept these to make sure that the other one is ok.' Arsenio says, tucking his back into his shirt.

'Ok, so how does it work?' I ask Malik, putting mine on.

'The color of the swirl changes if one of us is in danger, or hurt. Your color is a deep violet color, mine is gold, and Arsenio's is navy blue. And it does that when no one is in danger.' Malik says, pointing the mirror.

'Thank you!' I exclaim, hugging Malik. He laughs at me, then gently pushes me back to my pile of presents.

My Father walked over to me, and handed me my present, which was a small box, wrapped in silver. 'Here's yours.' He says to me, then pauses. 'Actually, this is for you and your brothers. Twins, I need you to come over here.' My Father says, gesturing them over to where we were sitting. The twins look up, curiously, and put down their own gifts, and walk over to us.

'Yes, Father?' Malik asks, sitting next to me.

'This is your prophecy, from the Hall of Prophecies. I thought you might want to hear it.' My Father says.

'Well alright then, let's hear it.' Arsenio says. I open the box, and pull out the small glass ball, with a mist, or a smoke floating around inside. I notice that there is a small envelope sitting in the bottom of the box, but I ignore it and hold the ball up to the light. I give my Father one more cautious look, before looking back at the crystal ball. And before I know it, the ball begins to speak, noting that it is in the hands of its owner.

_It can melt a cold heart within_

_ It can put light in the dark eyes of depression and evil_

_ And it keeps families together_

_ But beware, the force is rising, and they key_

_ Is to use the power of three._

It takes a while for the message to sink through, but I don't fully understand it. I look up at my Father, bewildered. My brothers mirror my expression, and look at my Father, looking totally confuzzled.

'What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?' Malik asks, looking lost.

But my Father just shrugs his shoulders. 'I don't know. It's not mine. You three are supposed to find out what it means, and to me, it sounds as if you best be finding out what it means fast.' He answers.

I look at my brothers, and their eyes match mine almost identically, full of desperation, confusion, and anxiety.

'Well, what are we supposed to do about it?' Arsenio asks.

'I'm not sure. But, by the looks of it, you four are done opening up your presents. I will get the house elves to clean up. You take that stuff to your room and get ready. Everyone else is coming over in a couple of hours.

That news lifts my spirits. I grab my wand out of my pocket and muttered the levitation spell, making my stuff magically float behind me. I walk out of the family room, and out into the hallway, making my way to the stairs, when my brothers walk up to me, with their presents floating behind them.

'So, what do you think it means?' Malik asks me, walking up to me.

'I haven't got a clue.' I admit, rethinking over the prophecy.

'I think we best figure it out fast. From the sound of it, it sounds like we aren't the only ones in danger, with that snake of a thing after us.' Arsenio jokes.

'I know! What did he have to do to make himself look like that?' Malik asks, laughing.

'Split his soul into 7 pieces.' I answer automatically.

They give me a weird look, so I clarify. 'I'm best friends with Harry, and he knows these sorts of things.' I say.

'Ah, the Boy Who Lived. Well, he can ease back in his recliner, because Voldemort's got a new target.' Arsenio says, looking at me seriously, not needing to finish his sentence.

We reach the top of the stairs, and break into our separate rooms. I set my stuff down neatly on my desk, as I go to get dressed. I'll sort through my stuff later. I get dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and a white blouse, splattered with the other colors of the rainbow. I pull my raven black hair into a high pony tail, and walk over to the door once again, shutting it.

I walk over to my brothers' room, and open the door. 'Hey, I'm gonna go help the house elves. You wanna come?' I ask them.

They give me a strange look. 'You're gonna go and help them? Why?' Arsenio asks.

'Because! I thought they might want some help.' I say, huffing.

I see them slump over in defeat. 'Oh, alright. Let's go.' Malik says.

'Just give us a moment.' Arsenio says. They both walk in to their own bathrooms, and walk out almost simultaneously, and dressed in the same exact thing, from the black jeans, to the tight white shirt, to the gold Bruno Mars hat.

'Do you guys coordinate that?' I ask them, walking out the door with them behind me.

'Coordinate what?' they ask simultaneously, giving me the same look.

I sigh, knowing the answer to that, was yes. We walk together in silence to the kitchen where the house elves were running madly around the kitchen, trying to get everything ready.

'Hey, is there anything we can help with?' I ask one of the elves politely.

She looks up at me with her big blue eyes. 'Oh, just one thing Ms. Hermione. I need someone to cut carrots, mince mushrooms, and peel corn.' She answers, listing the things on her tiny fingers.

'I call peeling the corn!' Malik says, shooting his hand up in the air.

'I'm mincing the mushrooms.' Arsenio calls.

I give them that Really-are-you-five-look, and say, 'I guess I'm cutting the carrots.' I say. The little elf rushes off to gather the supplies, and comes back with a trashcan for the corn, two knifes, one longer and sharper for the carrots, and the other one shorter for the mushrooms, and two cutting tables. She then lays out the corn, mushrooms, and carrots. 'If you would please put the finished stuff into three separate stacks when you are finished.' She says, then rushing off to finish her work.

I walk over to the one of the cutting board, and line up the carrots so I can cut them. Arsenio does the same to his mushrooms, and Malik sits on a wooden stool, picking up a piece of corn. I begin cutting the carrots, into nice, even slices.

**'Tell me again why we are doing this.' **Malik says, mentally, despite the fact that we are all about 2 meters away from each other.

'Really?' You couldn't have said that out loud?' I ask him, momentarily distracted. But before I hear anyone answer, I feel a knife sharp pain cut through my hand. I wince, and drop the knife to the floor, missing my foot by a couple of centimeters. I clutch my hand, which is bleeding steadily now. 'Oww..' I moan, clutching my injured hand like a life line.

'Mione!' Malik says, his golden eyes full with concern. _Wait, golden? What the hell… _He runs up to me, and pries my good hand away from my cut one, making wince in pain. But when he is examining it, the pain almost seems to be leeched out of my hand. I let out a moan of pleasure before I can stop it. His golden eyes look up at me. 'Mione? Are you ok? Does it hurt?' He asks, his voice sounding anxious.

'No, just keep doing whatever you are doing.' I mumble, letting the release of pain flow through me.

His golden eyes stare back at me, confused. 'What? I'm not doing anything…' he trails off.

'Bloody Hell! Look at your eyes!' Arsenio exclaims, running up to the two of us, looking straight at Malik.

'What… I'm so-' he cuts himself off, taking up the nearest frying pan, and looking at his reflection. He eyes widen, and he drops my hand, and I immediately feel the pain weaseling its way back into my hand. 'Malik…' I moan, reaching for one of his hands, but they are both holding the frying pan.

'What the hell…' Malik mutters to himself, putting the frying pan back down. I take this chance, and grab one of his hands again. He looks back at me, confused, then he remembers my hand. He clutches it again, looking at it. I look back at my hand too, and notice something, bizarre happening to it.

Slowing, the cut almost seems to stich itself up, closing the ugly wound that showed my bone. The pain was following it, leaving my hand, leaving behind a cooling sensation. I hear my brother take in a huge gasp of air, but never takes his eyes off my hand. His eyes that are still bright golden.

The wound silently closed itself up, leaving nothing but a mere scar on my hand. I take my hand away from his hesitantly, hoping it wouldn't open back up again, but it just stays a faint scar on my right hand. I look bewildered at my brother, who looks just as bewildered as I do. Arsenio, just looks lost.

'How did you do that?' I ask him, stunned, twisting my hand in front of my eyes to make sure I'm hallucinating or something.

'I…I don't have a bloody clue…' he mutters. He silently walks back over to the corn, and begins to peel the rest, while Arsenio goes back to mincing, clearly stunned as well. Carefully this time, I slowly cut the rest of the carrots, then wait for my brothers to finish up.

Moments later, Malik and Arsenio finish up, and we leave the kitchen, leaving the rest of the work for the elves. I turn to Malik, who has the weirdest look on his face, shock, disbelief, denial, call it what you want. He just looks upset.

'Hey, what's up?' I ask, concerned.

Malik turns and looks at me. 'I don't know. All I know is that somehow, I managed to heal your hand just by looking at it.' He answers truthfully.

'Hey… wait!' Arsenio says, throwing his hands in the air, as a sign of discovery or something.

Malik and I give him a weird look, so he clarifies. 'That, prophecy, and what Mother told you, that's his "special power"' Arsenio says, making air quotes around the words 'special power.'

Malik looks at Arsenio curiously. 'Really? That's my special power?'

But Arsenio just shrugs. 'I'm not sure. I mean, you should go and tell Father… later. But right now…' he waits, almost cuing for the door to ring. He pauses, holding his finger up, and points at nothing, and when he does, the loud, majestic chime of the doorbell rings throughout the house. Arsenio smirks proudly, then makes a bolt for the door, with Malik and I right behind him.

We reach the main hallway out of breath, waiting for my Father to answer to door.

'Where were you three?' he asks, amused by our facial expressions.

'Oh, just in the kitchen.' Malik answers, standing up straight, combing his fingers through his hair to fix it.

'Yeah, Mione dragged us into the kitchen to help the house elves finish up.' Arsenio adds jokingly, mirroring his brother's actions.

My Father rolls his eyes at the two of them, then opens the door, and in rushes three, bleach blonde wizards, wrapped profusely in cloaks.

'Merry Christmas Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, Draco.' My Father greets them, gesturing them inside.

'Merry Christmas.' Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy echo, hanging their cloaks on the cloak rack next to the door.

My brothers and I walk up to greet Draco. 'Merry Christmas Mate.' My brothers greet him, exchanging a polite handshake with Draco.

'Merry Christmas.' Draco echoes, then looks at me. 'Merry Christmas Mione.' He whispers, kissing me lightly on the cheek. My cheek instantly lights on fire as I feel fireworks exploding in my mind. I smile shyly, then return the greeting. 'Merry Christmas Draco.' I whisper back, just as soft.

'Hey, mate, WAKE UP!' Arsenio says, frantically waving his hand in front of Draco's face, who was still staring at me adoringly. I must admit, I thought I was going to melt under his gaze, those cool, mysterious gray eyes… _what?_ _Snap out of it… _I command myself lightly, but I don't listen.

But Draco looks up, amused. 'I'm up I'm up.' He says, putting his hands up in mock defeat. 'Where should I put this?' Draco asks, gesturing to the presents he was holding.

'Oh, you can just put that near the tree, we will open them later.' My Father answers, over hearing Draco.

'Well, let's go!' I say, yanking on however many wrists I could grab, then pulling them with me. I run for the tree, wait for the ones that were left behind, meaning my poor twin brothers.

They arrive moments later. 'Really? Must you run like that?' Arsenio asks, sitting down on the couch next to me.

'Yes, yes I must.' I answer, smirking at him.

'Yep, you are defiantly, a Snape. All of us Snape's have the same smirk.' Malik observes.

Draco laughs. 'Oh yes she is. I've seen it a lot more than I care to count.' This, of course, making me frown, which only causes him to laugh even more.

'I'll be back.' I say, abruptly standing up.

That shuts him up. He looks up at me, all looks of amusement are gone. 'No, I'm sorry. Please stay.' He begs.

I laugh at him. 'Oh, I know you are. But, if you don't trust me, you can come with me. I was just going to my room. Arsenio and Malik can handle the guests from here.' I say, shooting my brothers a quick look.

'Yeah, sure, we've got it way covered.' Arsenio answers sarcastically.

'Thanks!' I grin, completely ignoring his sarcasm. I grab Draco's wrist and pull him out of the family room before either one of my brothers could argue with me.

I pull Draco into the hallway, and up the spiral staircase, and into my room, and shut the door.

'Why are we in here again?' Draco asks me, sitting on my bed.

'Well, I'm in here to look for something. You're here because you doubted me.' I answer smartly, picking up the small box that my Father gave me.

'Yeah yeah.' Draco says, getting up and walking over to my black baby grand piano, that has been gathering dust over the last couple of months. 'What are you looking for?' he asks me, fingering over the dusty keys.

'I thought I saw something at the bottom of the box this morning…' I trail off, reaching down into the box, and lifting the letter out of the box, and looking at it. It isn't addressed to anyone, but I assume it's for me, because it was in my present. Draco looks at it curiously, then walks back over to the bed, and sits next to me.

'Whose it from?' he asks.

'Not sure…' I trail off again, peeling apart the old envelope. It's defiantly aged. I slowly open the old, yellowed letter, and read it.

Dearest Hermione,

If you are reading this, I suppose that means I have died, protecting you. You are safe, and always will be. But, if I am dead, that means you were taken away. I wrote this, because I had the most gnawing feeling inside my gut that something bad was about to happen. But I need you to stay strong. You can defeat Voldemort, you and your brothers, with the help of your friends. Inside this letter, I have enclosed a locket. Now this locket, is very special, and one of a kind. I've been working on it for a long time. It's a locket that can connect with the dead. Now, before you get ahead of yourself, don't use it too much. I've only allowed maybe an hour a day, because you still need to move on from those that you've lost, but it is important never to forget them.

I must go, your Father is calling. They are coming. I love you Hermione. Stay strong, and stay safe.

-Mother

The wet tears slowly flow down my face. I noticed that she taped a tiny locket to the bottom of the letter. I take the tape off, and pull my wand out of my boot, and mutter 'Engorgio.' And watch as the locket grows bigger, back to its normal size. I cautiously hold it up to eye level. It has an engraved H on it, and it's decorated with fire, water, rocks, and air. Weird…

'Bloody Hell.' Draco says, breaking me from my thoughts.

'Yeah…' I agree weakly. Then, something inside me puts two and two together. _My family! I bet they would want to see this! _'Come on Draco, let's go back downstairs.' I say, making a movement for the door, but me grabs my hand, sending sparks through me.

'No, not yet. I want you to do something, as a Christmas present for me.' He says, walking over to my piano.

'What? And I already got you something.' I say, walking over to him. He gently puts his hands on my shoulders, and pushes me down, onto the piano bench.

'Play.' He commands gently.

_Play? Play what? _'What do you want me to play?' I ask him curiously.

He just shrugs. 'I love anything you play. It sweeps through me like a, like a river almost, carrying away everything else in my mind away. Everything, except you.' He says, sitting next to me on the bench.

I blush profusely; I hope he doesn't notice it. 'Play anything. And by the way, you look absolutely beautiful when you blush.' He says, lightly kissing my cheek, which only causes me to blush even more, and further turns my brain, and every thought I had into mush. But, somewhere is my scrambled mind; I come up with a song. 'Ok,' I whisper. 'It's my favorite song, by a muggle pianist. River Flows in You.' I tell him. He leans away, gesturing for me to begin. Cautiously, I put my fingers down on the keys, and begin to play.

**DRACO'S POV**

She begins to play, and I immediately feel every stress in my body just wash away. It's beautiful, she's beautiful. Why doesn't she realize it? Just seeing her look down into the keys, and almost pouring all of her emotions out into the song, it just makes me fall all over again. This is just one of those moments, that if I could just freeze and live in forever, it would make me one of the happiest men alive.

The song gets louder, and her smile begins to broaden, which, naturally, makes my smile form even bigger too. She's got such an influence over me. I just stare at her, and I can tell that she knows is because her cheeks are getting redder and redder. Oh look, there's that love cliff again, and look, I'm falling again. If love is like falling off a cliff, I must be suicidal. Every little thing she does, is like magic to me.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I play the last chord of the song, and reach my hand up to my cheek, noting how hot it is. I knew that Draco was staring at me the whole time, and the longer it went on, the hotter my whole face got. 'What?' I ask him, noticing that he is still staring at me.

He pauses, snapping out of his trance, then speaks up. 'That, was beautiful.' He whispers, looking at me straight in the eye. 'Thank you.'

My blush deepens. 'Merry Christmas Draco.' I whisper back just as quietly. I see him lean in, and I act on impulse. 'Come on! I want to show this to my family.' I say, grabbing his wrist, stopping whatever motive he had before.

I hear him sigh, before he gives in, I hear him mutter something that I can't pick up, but I ignore it. I grab his wrist and pull on it, making him stand up. I feel bad for leaving him hanging like that, but, I've never been kissed before, and, I don't know. I just don't want to make a fool of myself in front of him, so I wrap the locket around my neck, next to the one Malik gave me, then rushed off, with Draco right behind me.

I run down the stairs, and frantically run to the family room, looking for my brothers and sister. I see them sitting on the couch, next to Pansy, Theo, Blaise, and Astoria, laughing at something someone must have said.

'Merry Christmas!' I hear an echo of everyone in the room. They all get up, and Theo engulfs me in a hug. I hug him back, then exchange hugs with everyone else, then rush over to my brothers.

'Malik, Arsenio, I need to talk to you two, privately.' I say urgently.

'Oh, ok, ok.' Malik says, standing up.

'Geez women, no need to yank my arm out of my socket!' Arsenio jokes, standing up next to his brother.

I begin to walk towards the dining room, where the adults and Ara were talking. My brother speaks up. 'Um, Mione? What is this about?' Malik asks, concerned.

'I'll tell you, in just a moment. I need Father and Ara to see this too.' I mutter, dropping their wrists.

They exchange a quick, concerned and confused glance at each other, then continue to quickly walk with me. I round the corner to the dining room, and see Ara and Father talking with all the other parents, and Theo's older brother, Max.

'Father, Ara, could we talk to you, in private?' I ask, speaking above the conversation that was going on before I interrupted.

My Father gives me a strange look, but Ara gets up. 'Sure Mione, what about?' she asks.

My father asks, 'What for Mia?'

'Just, please. It's urgent.' I respond. I suppose he hears the urgency in my voice, because he gets up, and excuses himself from the conversation, then walks over to me.

With them all waiting for me, I rush out of the room, and head over to a private room, somewhere in this house. I lead them to the old library, and make them all sit down. And when they do, the biggest grin spreads across my face. 'You won't be able to guess what I found in one of my presents.' I say excitedly.

They all give me a strange look, encouraging me to continue. 'I found this locket, in the box you gave me this morning Father.' I say, taking the locket out of my shirt, and show them, but they are all confused. 'Oh, just watch.' I say.

I open it up, to where it reveals a swirling mass of color. They all pear into the locket with curiosity. I clearly say, 'Kyla Snape.' I watch, as their faces morph in curiosity and surprise, as they watch the colors in the locket swirl around, and suddenly, a face appears, beaming up at us.

'M-mother?' I hear my sister mutter.

'Oh, Ara! Malik, Arsenio, Severus!' I hear my Mother exclaim through the locket. Ara bursts into tears of joy, her smile unable to stop spreading.

'Hey, don't cry sweetie.' I hear my Mother try and comfort her. I smile, but I feel, I don't know, I just feel that someone else is watching. I turn around, and I see Draco, leaning against the doorway. I roll my eyes, and mouth _what do you want? Can't you see we are in the middle of a family moment?_

But he looks desperately back at me, straightening himself up against the wall. He mouths, _Please Hermione, I really need to talk to you. _He also gestures his hands in a begging motion. I roll my eyes, and hold up one finger to him, telling him that I am coming. I turn back to my family and say, 'I'll be right back. But, you only have an hour, till tomorrow.' I tell them. I see them nod, but they don't say anything. I get up, and walk over to where Draco was standing.

'Yes?' I ask him, crossing my arms, looking up at him expectantly.

He grabs my hand, intertwining his fingers in mine. 'I need you to come with me.' He says, gently pulling on my hand. I let him lead me to one of the empty hallways in my house, and he walks into a dimly lit room, and stands in the doorway. 'I wanted to see your reaction to my present in person.' He says, pulling his present out of his pocket, and enlarging it back to its full size with his wand. He hands it to me, and I take it in my hand, trying to guess what is inside.

'Merlin I hate it when people do that. Just open it!' Draco tells me, jokingly. I smile up at him, then rip open his wrapping, to find a box inside. I let the paper fall to the ground, and I open the box, to find an extremely old looking book. I walk into the room, with Draco right behind me. I sit down on one of the chairs and dust off the cover of the book, and gasp. The dusty old cover read "Hogwarts, a History" I look up at Draco, who is sitting on the arm rest, looking down at me lovingly, and amusedly.

'So, what do you think?' He asks me, but words don't come to mind.

'Draco… is.. Is this-?' I cut off my question, knowing well enough that he can finish the question himself.

'The original copy of Hogwarts, a History? Yes, yes it is.' He answers, smiling at my reaction, which I think is totally appropriate.

'Bu-t, b-but how?' I ask him again, running my fingers up the spine of the old book.

'It's my grandfather's. He knew the writer's grandson.' Draco answers.

'Draco… Draco thank you!' I exclaim, throwing my arms around his neck, throwing him on his back to the floor. He laughs, then pushes us both up.

'I'm glad you like it, but there is something else in the box.' Draco informs me, offering his hand to help me up. I take it, the rush over to the box like a child. I look inside the box, and notice a locket at the bottom, and I smiled amusedly. I lift the locket up, and examine it with glee. But, Draco noticed my amused look, and asks, 'What?'

'Nothing, it's just, I've gotten two other lockets today, one to tell me if my brothers are safe, and the other that lets me communicate with my Mother.' I answer, mesmerized by the locket. It is decorated with bright green emeralds, and diamonds, in the shape in of an H, like the other two.

'Oh, then I've got some competition.' Draco smiles amused, like myself. He fingers with a matching locket around his next, only his is engraved with a D.

I open it, and there is a picture of the two of us, smiling and waving at the camera. Draco gives me a small peck on the cheek, before smiling back up at the camera that was filming this. 'Draco… this is beautiful.' I whisper. I walk over to him, and hold the locket up to him. 'Can you put it on me?' I ask him shyly.

He grabs the locket from me, and I turn around, holding my raven black hair up. I feel the cool metal touch my neck, then I turn back around, smiling at him. 'Thank you Draco.' I say. I grab his wrist, and pull him towards the doorway, heading back to the others. But, he stops walking, stopping me too. I turn around curiously, looking at him.

'Yes?' I ask him.

He doesn't say anything, he just points up. I look up to where his finger is pointing, and I feel my face get hot, from blushing. He's pointing to a small little mistletoe, growing from the ceiling. My blush deepens, and I turn and look away, but Draco catches my face, gently in his hand.

'Merry Christmas Hermione.' He whispers, looking deeply into my eyes. I feel my breath stop in my throat, and all other thoughts fly out of my mind. His hand gently strokes my cheek, and I feel myself involuntarily lean in to his touch.

'Merry Christmas Draco.' I whisper back, just in time before I feel his lips descend onto mine.

**A/N: The prophecy, it's a poem I found on Google. I don't own it, I only tweaked it a tad to fit this story. And HOLY MERLIN! I'm sorry for the long chapter! You all must be all like, '**_**Argh, when is it going to be OVER?'**_** I'll make it shorter next time, I promise. Or, I'll try to. No guarantees though. ;) And you wanna know how long this chapter is? 11,132 words! **


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Harry Potter. I only own my OC's. And the song from last chapter, "River Flows in You," by Yiruma, yeah, don't own that song either. **

**A/N: Hey, have you done what I have asked of you young peoples? Have you read ****Spring Break ****yet? Well, you should. Just saying. You can look back at my previous chapter for the author, my dear friend ****EpicNinja8. ****Now, on with thy story! (Yes, I did just say thy) And also, she's writing another story for the Hunger Games, but it isn't out yet, it's just a thought. SO, Hunger Games fans? Go check her out when she posts it? Hm?**

**And what about my reviews? I want my reviews now. I've even been planning for where this story is going, all the way to chapter 46! So, how about those reviews?**

**And oh? I've been getting a lot of reviews saying how much you people love the long chapters… sigh… you bunch are a hard bunch to please. I will **_**try, **_**but there are no guarantees that they will all be that long. **

**Anyway, enjoy! :]**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 21

_Pull away! PULL AWAY! _My mind yells at me but I can barely hear it over the sound of my own accelerating heartbeat. His warm lips gently move across mine, as if he's hesitant. I feel a smile crawl onto my face, as I begin to kiss him back. I feel him smile against my lips, as he continues to kiss me. But, either due to the lack of air or for the fact that I'm embarrassing myself to no end, I gently push Draco away, as I turn my own face down, in pure embarrassment. Draco gently lifts his hand to my face, and turns it upward, so I'm forced to look at him straight, into his mysterious gray eyes.

'Hermione?' He questions me quietly, stroking my face slowly.

Smiling up at him, I grab his hand, and intertwine his fingers in mine. 'Come on, I think the others might be waiting for us.' I say back. I see his face light up slightly, and I notice that his own blush deepens a bit more. He smiles down at me, then leads me out of the room, then stops right before we enter the family room, where laughter could be heard echoing throughout the hallway. I look up at him, confused.

He looks down at me, as he answers my unspoken question. 'What… what are we now Mione?' He asks, sounding slightly serious, but whatever serious-ness I heard was being overpowered by the uncountable nervous-ness in his voice.

I knew what he meant, and how badly he wanted it answered now, but I truly have no idea. I just decide to speak my mind. I drop his hand, and look up at his with nothing but seriousness in my violet purple eyes. 'Honestly, Draco. I have no clue. Even if we were, we wouldn't be together in school, not really. To everyone else, we are still mortal enemies. We wouldn't be able to be together either, not with everyone watching everyone else watching everyone so closely. And… I don't know, I'm just not sure that this is the best time… I'm so sorry…' I trail off, unable to continue or look straight into his eyes right now. From what I can guess, they are full of hurt and sadness. Ashamed of what I just admitted, I begin to walk into the family room, tears threatening to make an appearance, but Draco catches my wrist, pulling me backwards.

'Mione… Hermione look at me,' he commands softly. Tears slowly flowing down my face, I look up at him, but I'm surprised by what I see. His gray, stormy eyes aren't full of hurt confusion and depression, but rather, they were full of understanding and compassion. 'That's fine. I understand that you aren't ready. Hell, I wouldn't be ready either, if I just found out that my potions professor was my father, and that my mortal, sworn enemies would become my best friends. And I can't even think about having to mention this to Potter and Weasley.' He pauses, to shutter slightly, but continues anyway. 'I just want you to know, that I will always be here for you. And, when and if you're ready, I'll be here. I will wait for you, even if I have to wait forever.' Draco says lightly, gently brushing the tears off with his thumb.

Awestruck, I just stare up at him, unable to think of anything to thank him. Instead, I just wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him lightly, then hug him, burying my face into his shirt. 'Thank you,' I whisper. I let go of him, then together, we walk into the family room, where, by the looks of it, where Theo, Blaise, the twins, Pansy, and Astoria were clearly waiting for us.

'About time lovebirds,' Blaise greets us, turning around to smirk at the two of us. I feel the blush creep back onto my cheeks, but I go and sit back in between my brothers, while Draco just stands next to Blaise, giving him that "really?" look.

'Hey, do you guys wanna go outside? I've just got the best idea.' Theo speaks up, his face beaming with excitement, despite the look on everyone else's face. Everyone else's' faces showed confusion, as they turned to face the boy with the idea.

'Outside? It's _snowing _out there Einstein. Why in the world would we go out there?' Pansy asks, scoffing him off.

'Hello, wizards_!' _Theo says, waving his wand above his head in a very exaggerated manner.

'Sure, you guys wanna? I'm curious to see what he wants us to do.' Astoria speaks up, standing up.

We all follow her, and we all walk over to the back door. 'Oh, hold on.' I say, taking my wand out of my boot. 'Accio cloaks.' I say, and catch the eight cloaks flying towards me. I hand everyone their cloaks, then shout out, 'Father! We're going outside!' After I'm positive he heard me, I open the door, and walk outside.

The cold Christmas air immediately bites at my cheeks, but the snow has let up. It's now snowing very lightly. I feel a smile make its way onto my face, and turn to Theo with a smirk. 'So? What's your big idea?'

'I thought, that we could just come out here, and see which one of us is the toughest.' Theo says, with a smirk on his face, seeing that everyone else's faces' were struck dumb.

'Toughest? What? That isn't even fair. There are three girls. We can't go up against you!' Astoria exclaims.

'And see who is the toughest? What kind of dumb idea is that?' Pansy scoffs, brushing the snow off a big rock, so that Astoria, herself and I could sit there.

'I'm in. I've always wanted to pound the kid's face it, sometimes.' Arsenio says suddenly, taking his cloak off, and muttering a spell over his body.

'I'm in too. It's not every day you're offering for us to beat you up.' Malik says, shedding his own cloak to put on a warming spell. Blaise and Draco follow, taking off their own cloaks, to warm themselves up magically.

'Well hey! If we are going to just be sitting here and watching the five of you pound the life out of each other, can we at least have something to look at?' Pansy asks jokingly.

Draco smirked, the shed his shirt, revealing his toned… muscular six pack…. Wait! What am I thinking? They aren't _that _toned… Any who, Theo, Blaise, Malik and Arsenio smirk at the three of us, and shredded their own shirts and turned to smirk at us. I was blushing profusely, and turned my head down. I hear Pansy and Astoria swoon, as they start giggling.

'I was joking, but I'm not arguing…' Pansy manages to say, before she's overtaken by another wave of giggles.

'So? How is this going to work?' Malik asks, turning back towards Theo.

Theo just shrugs. 'I'm not sure. Just like a normal muggle tournament. We just face off against each other.' He answers.

'Ok, so let's do me against Malik, and Arsenio against Blaise, and the winner will play against you Theo, since this was your idea.' Draco says.

'I'm cool with that. You wanna go first Arsenio?' Blaise asks, turning towards Arsenio.

My brother was flexing his muscles with an over confident smirk. 'Alright. Let's do this thing.' I roll my eyes at him, and watch amusedly as they take their stances, a couple of meters away from each other.

A**RSENIO'S POV**

'Ready?' I hear Draco call out. I nod curtly in his direction, never taking my eyes, off my opponent. Blaise doesn't say anything, he just maintains his eye contact with me. 'Fight!' Draco calls out. I suddenly feel a rush of undeniable power surge through me. I run forward straight towards Blaise, and I stick my leg out, just far enough to trip Blaise in his path. He falls flat on his face, then turns upward to face me. I see confusion sweep over his face, momentarily distracting him, which, of course is perfect for me. I dig my right foot under his back and forcefully kick him upward, sending him flying. I jump up, positioning myself perfectly. Once I'm high enough, and bring my foot up, and forcefully bring it down straight down in the center of his back, right on his spinal cord. I see him fly downward, and let myself follow. He lands hard, on his back, and I land right next to him, on my knee, with my right hand on the ground. I turn my head up, and smirk at him, moaning in pain. I've never felt so powerful in my life, and I love it. I feel my smirk widen, as I see his face.

'Merlin… where did you learn to fight like that?' he asks me, sitting up. I see everyone else lean in or walk forward, interested in my answer. That's when reality slaps me in the face, as the smirk disappears from my face. I actually have no clue where that power came from. 'I… I don't know. I, I acted on impulse I guess.' I answer, hoping my uncertainty doesn't show through my voice.

Blaise, and apparently everybody else bought it. But, Blaise brings something else to my attention. 'Dude, then can you explain what the hell happened to your eyes?' he asks, pointing weakly to my face. I immediately feel guilt rush over me, about pounding the life out of my friend, but that's not the main thing that hits me. Confusion is the main that that hits me.

'What… what are you talking about?' I ask, muttering to myself, talking too quietly for him to hear me anyway. I walk over to the frozen river and look down. I look up to see my sister walk over to me, curiously. I turn back down to the river, and scan over my reflection, but it doesn't take long to spot the obvious difference.

Staring back at me, weren't the deep violet eyes I was used to starring back at me. Instead, unrecognizable, glimmering, bright, golden eyes were staring back up at me, with the upmost confusion, shock, and disbelief staring back up at me.

'Arsenio, your eyes, they're golden!' she says, sounding surprised, stating the obvious. 'They're like Malik's, then I cut my hand earlier today!'

That strikes some fear in me, my power, being, what? The power to beat the crap out of my friends? That's a terrible power! Feeling frustrated, I shove her hand off my shoulder. 'It's, nothing. It's probably just the cold. Come on, its Malik's turn.' I say turning around to face my brother, who was looking at me with the most curious look plastered on his face. 'Ready to face Draco?' I ask him, placing my hand on his shoulder, smirking at him.

'Yeah… I guess. It would be better if I had your spontaneous ninja moves though.' Malik jokes weakly, as if he's hesitant around his own brother. I'm taken aback by his sudden hesitation, but I ignore it, slightly.

Malik turns back to Draco, ignoring my sudden hurt feeling, to face his own opponent. 'Ready Draco?' he asks.

Draco smirks back at my brother. 'Ready. Can you call it Blaise?' Draco asks, turning to Blaise.

'Yeah… sure' Blaise mutters, still recovering from my beating. 'Ready?' he asks Draco and Malik, who are taking their own fighting stance.

'Ready.' Draco smirks, not taking his eyes off my brother. I can see Malik swallow is nervousness, but he curtly nods towards Blaise.

'Fight!' Blaise calls.

Draco runs forward, and punches Malik straight in the shoulder, causing him to stagger backwards. He then punches the other side, causing Malik to fall backwards. I stagger backwards, because I can feel his pain too. Sometimes this connection thing is stupid. Like, I felt an extreme burning sensation when he got burned by that damn Night Fury. But, I don't have that awesome scar across my back like he does.

Anyway, Malik regains his balance, and throws a punch at Draco's arm. Draco responds by sticking his leg out, and trips Malik over. Draco pins Malik down by his shoulders. I can tell that Malik is struggling against Draco's body weight, but it's no use. Draco smirks down at Malik.

'Draco, you win.' Blaise calls. Draco releases his body weight, and helps Malik up.

'Argh, I think you cracked my rib cage with your arse…' Malik muttered, clutching his chest.

Draco laughs goodheartedly. 'Ah shut it. You're fine.' He grabs Malik wrist, and yanks him upward. Malik groans in pain, but tries to smile back. 'Well, you're up against my Ninja of a brother. Good luck.'

The familiar power surging through my veins again, I turn and smirk back at Draco, who matches my smirk almost exactly. All the guilt I was feeling before was gone. All I feel now is power, and a ton of it. I take my stance, placing my hands in front of my body, my hands flat and open, ready to block or attack at a moment's notice.

'Ready?' Malik asks, raising his hand up. I turn and smirk at him, nodding curtly, then turn my attention back to Draco, who was eying me, watching my every step. Draco doesn't respond, but Malik knows he's ready.

'Fight!' Malik yells, backing away immediately.

Deciding to take a different approach, I dodge his every attack until he wears himself out. I dodged his first attack. He throws a punch at my shoulder, which I quickly avoid. I flipped backwards, and I tripped Draco from under him. He staggered a bit, then regained his balance. I ran behind him, then I used his weak point, his back side, and used it to flip him around. He landed hard on his back. For the final blow, I lifted my leg upward, and brought it down on his stomach, hard, then I dig my foot under his stomach and kick him into the air. I jump up, and spin backwards, gaining momentum. After one full spin, I extended my leg out, and dig my heel into his throat, sending downward towards the ground. But, I judged incorrectly. Instead of him landing on the snowy ground below us, he spins in midair about four or five times before he lands, right on his back, on the thin ice about twenty meters away, that just barely protects the open world from the frigid waters beneath it.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

'Draco!' I scream desperately. I run up to the river, and frantically search the river for any sign of him. But all of a sudden, somewhere a bit further down the river, I see Draco being shot out of the river by a giant stream of water. I see his arms flailing in midair as he tries to slow himself down, but something else does. I giant stream of air comes out of nowhere and safes him from potentially splitting his spine in half. 'Draco!' I scream again, running over to him.

He's shivering harshly, and his whole complexion seems twenty shades whiter. I take my own warm jacket off of me, and wrap it around him. I grip his hand tightly, and look to see if he's still breathing. Luckily, his breathing is somewhat normal, he's just shivering.

'Ah, whatever you are doing, don't stop.' He mutters, smiling in content.

Staring into his eyes, I can tell that my eyes tell that I am confused. 'What… what am I doing?' I ask to myself, knowing he can't hear me anyway. I take my hand away from his and examine it, trying to find something that was different, but I immediately feel him moan in pain again.

'No… come back…' he moans, reaching for my hand again. 'Whatever you were doing, you were heating my body up again. It felt as if you were circulating heat through my veins…' he sighs in contentment once again, when I subconsciously grab his hand again. I see the relief wash over his face again, but that only fuels my ever growing confusion. I see his face jerk back into reality, and focus on what is in front of him, but when he makes eye contact with me, his faces morphs into confusion, overtaking the look of relief he had before. 'Um… Mione?' he asks uncertainly.

'Yeah?' I ask, concentrating on trying to warm him up, not really paying attention to anything he was saying.

'What… why the hell... what the hell happened to your eyes?' He stutters, but I snap back into reality, by the words that just slipped out of his lips.

'What? What are you talking about?' I ask, my confusion the same as Mount Everest in height. If there's anything I hate more than Voldemort and Elf enslavement, it's being confused. I have no idea what he is talking about or why he looks so petrified, and it irks me to no end. I let go of his hand, too much of his own protest, and walk over to the river, sitting in front of it on my knees. By this time, everyone else made their way up to Draco, but my brothers walk up to me, on either side of me.

Looking down, my eyes are not met with my somewhat normal violet eyes, that I don't see that often anyway, but I don't see my chocolate brown eyes that the 'muggle-born' me had either. They're a bright shade of gold, like a symphony of different shades of it gold as well. And I knew they were my own, because they held that same baffled look I was wearing.

'Malik, Arsenio, my eyes…' I trail off, knowing well enough they know what I'm talking about.

'They are just like how ours were.' Arsenio finishes for me.

'What is this supposed to mean? That we have those, Mood eyes or something? Because if that's the case, then I think gold is the color for confusion.' Malik tries to joke, but he knows all too well that he's just as baffled as Arsenio and I.

'We should tell Father. Maybe he knows. And if he doesn't, I'm going to find out for myself.' I say determinedly, standing up and brushing the snow off my jeans.

'Oh, of course you are going to Mione, regardless if Father knows or not.' Arsenio jokes.

The three of us walk back over to the group, who were all fully clothed once again. Blaise and Theo were helping Draco up off the ground, and they handed Draco his own shirt, that had been magically dried off. Theo turned to my brother, and said, 'I don't think there's any point in fighting you. If you were able to kick Draco into the frozen river, and bruise Blaise's neck, I don't think that I would put up any more of a fight than they did.'

My brother tenses up and freezes next to me, and I know why. He didn't mean to kick the very breath out of either of them. He acted on impulse, but for some reason, I think it was more than that. I mean, Malik didn't mean to heal my hand this morning, and I didn't mean to heat Draco's hand up. It has something to do with our eyes changing color, from violet to golden. And, despite what I want to believe, I can bet almost anything that it has something to do with those powers Father mentioned. But I don't even know what mine is. Can I control whatever I want? If so, then I want to see Voldemort, now.

'Come on, let's go inside. The longer I'm out here, the more I want some hot chocolate.' Pansy says, trying to warm herself up by rubbing her hands up and down her arms. She snaps me out of my trance, and I follow them, as we all walk towards the back door of my house. We all walk in silence, trying to interpret what we just saw.

**'Should we talk to Father? When we get inside?' **Malik asks, not wanting to break the silence that everyone else hears.

**'I suppose, but what are we supposed to say? Hey Father, I healed my sister when she cut herself by using my mind, Arsenio kicked Draco into a river that was twenty meters away, and Mione was able to make the river spit Draco when he was drowning. What's up with you?' **Arsenio jokes, but it was only meant as a hollow joke.

**'I don't know, well, actually, yes, I do. Let's NOT start the conversation with that.' **I start, looking at my brothers' faces; I saw a smile creep onto their faces. **'I think we should just tell him, and see what he says from there.' **I supply.

**'Whatever you say smart one.' **Arsenio jokes, before our minds fall silent once again.

We walk through the door, and shed our cloaks, outing them back on the cloak rack. We all head over to the couch, before I give Arsenio and Malik that look, telling them that we should tell Father now. 'Um, guys? We'll be right back. There is something we should tell our Father.' I say, standing up again, with my brothers behind me.

'Is it about what happened out there? About Arsenio and you?' Pansy asks, looking up at us.

'Yeah, it's about that…' Arsenio trails off. I tug on their wrists, and we leave the family room, in search of wherever the parents were. 'Urgh, do you have any idea where they are? This house is only so small.'

'My guess is the dining room.' I say, heading in that direction.

'So, what exactly are we going to say to him?' Malik asks, just before he walks into the dining room.

Hesitating for a moment, I think about what exactly we would tell him. 'Well, I think we should just tell him about what we think our powers are, and we should mention our eyes changing color.' I answer after a moment of mulling it over in my mind.

They nod, showing they get it. With one last look at my brothers, I walk into the Dining room, where the parents and Ara were sitting, in the exact same place they were before I went to fetch them earlier. I clear my throat, trying to get them to acknowledge my presence.

They all fall silent, turning to look at me. 'Yes, Mione dear?' Mrs. Malfoy asks politely.

'We need to talk to our Father, in private, if you don't mind. Father?' I ask, nodding in his direction.

'Alright, I'm coming.' He says, excusing himself from the conversation once again. He walks over to us, then the three of us lead him out of the room, and into a more private room. Since I'm in front, I decide where to go. I decide to lead them to the library, whether it's on impulse or not.

Putting my hands on the grand, double wooden doors, I push them open and walk inside, as the smell of old books flows through my mind. I sit down on the couch, in front of the fireplace. My brothers take a seat on either side of me, and my father sits in front of us.

'Ok, what is this about?' My father asks, once he notices the rather uncomfortable looks on our faces.

My brothers look at me, obviously they want me to start it. 'Uh, well, there's something that we should tell you, it has to do with our prophecy that we received this morning.' I begin, scanning my father's face for any sign of something we don't want to hear.

But he says nothing. He only nods, letting me know that I can keep going. 'Well, throughout the day, we've noticed something off, whenever something has happened. It will make more since when you hear our individual stories, but whenever something happens, normally something bad, our eyes turn golden.' I say. I turn to Malik, telling him that he needs to tell his first, since it happened first.

'Ok, well, this morning, Mione wanted Arsenio and I to go down at help out the house elves.' Malik begins, which spikes a look of amusement on my father, but he says nothing, so Malik continues. 'I was peeling corn, Arsenio was mincing mushrooms, and Mione was cutting carrots. But, she accidentally cut herself when she got distracted. I grabbed her hand, and it magically began to heal itself. But when I took my hand away, the wound began to re-open itself, so I grabbed her hand again, and I let it fully heal this time. Only the thing is, I have no idea how I was doing it, all I was thinking about was getting Mione help. And, the whole time, my eyes were a bright golden color, up until the point where I walked away from Mia, to finish peeling.' Malik retells, not leaving out a single major detail.

My father nods, not looking at either three of us, but his eyes were trained to the floor. I nudge Arsenio, telling him that he needs to tell his next.

'Once everyone got here, Theo had the brilliant idea of going out in the middle of a blizzard to go and fight each other, as a bet. I fought Blaise first, oh don't give me that look!' he cuts off, noticing my father's disapproving glaze, but continues anyway. 'I felt the strongest rush of power, like I could beat anyone if I could. So, I kinda beat the crap out of Blaise, then I fought Draco, and ended up kicking him twenty meters away, into the river.' Arsenio wraps up, adding a bit of humor into his retelling, unlike Malik, who had been completely serious about the whole thing.

My father remains silent, so I just begin my story. 'I went to see if I could help Draco out of the river, but I couldn't see him, and I was starting to get really panic-stricken and worried. All of a sudden, the river spats him back out, a couple meters downstream. I rush over to him, and grab his hand, checking for any sign of life. He's alive, and apparently, I was heating his body back up without meaning to. And it's similar to Malik, when I took my hand away, the warmth was withdrawn from his hand. So, I grabbed his hand again, and waited until he said he was good. Then he commented about my eyes, how there were the exact same shade and color as Arsenio and Malik's were earlier.' I finish, waiting to see what he says.

But once again, our ears are met with nothing, only the crackling sound of the dying fire behind us. He just remains seated, with his head in his hands. My guess is that he is just mulling over what we just told him.

'Oi! Father! What do you think about this whole thing?' Arsenio barks, making the three of us jump.

My father still says nothing, but he stands up, and strides towards one of the shelves, looking for something. Our eyes follow him, as he gets frustrated. Eventually, he just pulls his wand out, and the book suddenly comes flying from a high shelf in the back of the room. He walks back over to us, and sets the book down on the table. The dusty old cover reads, "_Paranormal Family Relations" _

'Paranormal? What are we? Some form of a ghost?' Arsenio cries, opening the book, and flicking the pages by with his fingers.

My father gives him that same look that he gives Harry and Ron, that "You're-an-imbecile-now-turn-to-page-three hundred ninety four" look. 'No, it's a book about the cycle of the three. They are born every, hundred years or so. It documents every single sibling, and what they could do, under what circumstances. You will find that the circumstances are the same. I will leave this with you guys, while I go do more research at the Ministry tomorrow.' My father says. Then with one last look at us, he leaves the library.

'Well, that was helpful.' Arsenio muses, with distaste laced in his voice.

'Why the hell didn't he explain anything to us?' Malik exclaims, picking up the book, looking down on it with the upmost distaste in his look.

Taking the book from him, I open it to the table of contents, hoping just to find an introduction to this nonsense. And why name it Paranormal Family relations?' I ask myself.

Running my fingers over the contents, I come across the perfect place to start, _Introduction to the Cycle….. Page five. _I turn to page five, and start reading, hoping to find something out.

'Wait! I want to find something out too.' Arsenio stops me, putting his hand in front of the page, stopping me.

'Umm… ok. How about the two of you just go look around the library for more books on this stuff. The more we know, the better off we will be.' I say, pointing in the direction of one of the bookcases. The two of them leave, in search for more books. I turn my attention back to the book.

_Introduction to the Supernatural Powers_

_The supernatural triplets have been born, every one hundred years or so. They help balance in the magical world. In most situations, the triplets are two girls and one boy, but in extreme situations, there are two boys and one girl. When this happens, the triplets are more powerful than normal. But, when that does happen, it means that darkness is on the rise. _

_The cycle of the Triplets continues as the triplets before them die. They possess the power the power to communicate between each other, without uttering a single word. They also possess the power to feel each other's physical and emotional pain. The triplets are definitely closer emotionally than any other siblings. _

_In this book, you will read all about the different supernatural powers that may be found in the Supernatural Triplets. This book documents every power that have been found in any of the triplets. They have been around ever since magic has. _

_Transformation Powers… 6-7_

_Sharpened Senses…. 8-9_

_Brain Powers… 10-11_

_Fighting Powers… 12-13_

_Healing Powers… 14-15_

_Elite Powers… 16-17_

_Elite powers? What are those? _I wonder. I flip over to page sixteen, and begin reading about the so called, Elite Powers.

_Elite Powers_

_Elite powers are definitely if not the strongest power that a triplet can possess. He or she possesses the power to control the natural elements of the earth. Fire, Air, Water, and Earth. With the right training, this triplet will be able to bring peace to any dark power. _

_While the triplet is still mastering the power, it can be easily influenced by emotion, along with any other power. While the possessor is young, the power can be, awakened by an extreme sense of anger, pride, sadness, depression, hurt, worry, anxiousness, etc. _

_The first power that the possessor learns is the one closest to a person's personality. So, that element will come the easiest to a person who matches it. The hardest will be the element opposite of a person's personality. _

_Also, elementals are born into the world about twenty-thirty years before the triplets, so they will help master the elements, and the emotional side of bending. Being able to control ones emotions is the most important part of bending. Because, if you were to get out of control, your power would get out of control as well. _

I stop reading, to look up to see what Arsenio and Malik were doing. They found their own books, and we comfortably sitting on a windowsill. 'What did you guys find?' I shout from the other side of the library. I see them physically jump, and Malik hits his head on the side of the window.

'Ow! You didn't have to shout! You can tell us through our minds too you know.' Malik says, rubbing his head.

**'Sorry, what did you guys find?' **I ask them through my mind instead.

**'Nothing much, I found a book on different fighting techniques.' **Arsenio says, mindlessly flipping through the pages.

**'And I found a book on different ways of healing someone. I'm searching for the way I did it, involuntary.' **Malik jokes.

**'Well, in the book Father gave us… it tells me what my power is, Elite powers.' **I tell them.

**'Elite powers? That sounds totally badass and boss-like. What is it?' **Arsenio asks, sounding excited.

**'According to the book, we are rare triplets. So, we get the cool powers, and apparently, I've got the ability to control the natural elements.' **I answer.

**'Whoa what? That's awesome! I wish I could do that. All I can do is pound the fudge out of people.' **Arsenio joked.

**'Yeah, and I can heal cuts. Woo ho. Now you can be all Avatar like. Lucky.' **Malik says.

**'It's not that great…' **I mutter, cutting them out. Suddenly, we hear a loud knock on the door, and suddenly, someone burst through the door.

'Ha! I knew you would be in here Mione, but what are you two doing in here?'

My head jerks towards the sound, and I see Draco standing by the entrance to the library, looking highly amused at me. 'Really Mione? It's Christmas break, and you're spending it in a library?' he asks, not expecting an answer.

'Oh, we were just-'

**'No Mione! Don't tell him, not yet.' **Arsenio cuts me off, shooting me an anxious look.

'We were just… reading.' I supply feebly, hoping he would buy that. I mean, it was true, I just wasn't telling him WHAT I was reading about.

'Well come on, all three of you. This is no place to be spending Christmas. Come on, your father said dinner was ready.' Draco informs us, ripping the book out of my hands, and throwing it down on the coffee table in front of me. Fortunately, he didn't read the cover of the book, so he didn't question me. I saw Malik and Arsenio jump off the window sill, and stride over to us, looking gleeful to stop reading. Together, we walk out of the library, and begin walking towards the Dining Room.

'Wake up Mione!'

I jerk awake, feeling the blood rushing to my head. I groan loudly, and try and figure out what called my name so loudly. My eyes slowly focus, and my brothers and Father standing at the entrance to my door. My brothers were dressed in gray, baggy pants, and tight white shirts. 'Why the weird dress-up?' I ask groggily, rubbing my eyes, as I sit up in my bed, so I could face them.

'I'll tell you, in a second. Just get dressed in something similar, and meet us by the back door in five minutes.' My father says curtly. Then he promptly strides out the room, with my brothers right behind him. Confused, I get out of bed, and search my dressers for some baggy sweat pants and a t-shirt.

Finally, I found a pair of matching baggy gray sweat pants, and I also found a tight white t-shirt. I don't know who dresses like this if they aren't working out, but maybe my father has a new work out routine for us. Laughing at the thought, I quickly get dressed and make my way downstairs, while pulling my hair into a high ponytail, and make my way to the back door. I see them all standing there patiently. 'Ok, so what are we doing here?' I ask them.

'Come outside. There is something I need to tell you.' My father says, opening the back door. I exchange a quick glance with my brothers before I stepped the doors, and follow my father down to the forest, near the river.

My brothers and I stopped, in front of another giant rock, and turned to face him. 'Ok, what's up Father?' Arsenio asks, taking a seat on the rock behind us. Malik and I follow him, taking a seat on the rock as well.

'Ok, but I need you to remain quiet until I'm finished. Deal?' he asks, standing in front of us.

We all nod, waiting for him to begin. 'Ok, well, this morning, I went to the Ministry-'

'This morning? What the heck? It's seven in the morning? Who gets earlier than seven am to go somewhere? That ludicrous!' Malik exclaims, throwing his hands in the air in disbelief. My father shoots him that look telling him to shut up, and then he continues.

'I went to the Ministry this morning, to ask around the different departments if they had any clue as to what the supernatural triplets were. None of them knew, except for one department, the Department of Supernatural Powers. Yes, I know, the Ministry has a department for everything.' He pauses, noticing the bewildered looks on our faces. 'Anyway, they told me almost everything. Malik, we can start with you.' My father says, gesturing towards Malik.

'Your power is being able to heal anything. From what I heard, your power works best when it is used on someone you love, or care for, but you can use it on anyone. But, for those that you care about, that is normally triggered by an emotion, such as being anxious, or desperate. That's what you were feeling when you healing Hermione, right?' he asks Malik. Malik only nods, so my father continues. 'You have the power to heal anyone, just by touching them, and concentrating on how much you need the person to live. It can bring a person back inches from Death. But sometimes, a person just has to die, and there really isn't anything you can do. But, if the person isn't meant to die, you can save them. You also must learn the different ways of healing people. ' My father recites what he heard this morning.

My brother doesn't move for a moment, then speaks up. 'Can I do it on myself?' he asks.

'Yes, you can. You need to live am I right?' he asks, amused by his lack of thought.

Malik's face confused face turn into understanding. 'Hey, does this mean I get to be a healer? I do have an advantage over everyone else. I can heal people with my mind.' Malik exclaims triumphantly.

My father rolls his eyes at Malik. 'Sure son. Become a healer, and heal everyone with your mind. Now, Arsenio, come here.' My father says, gesturing Arsenio up. Arsenio steps up towards Father, waiting to see what he has to say.

'Now, they told me that Fighting powers are totally different. They are triggered by a great sense of pride and confidence when you're fighting someone. Which means, don't you dare get into fights at school. We don't need your eyes turning all golden in front of everyone. Anyway, it also means, that you can't die in battle. No matter what it is, you can't die. Not from spells, not from physical contact, none of that. But that doesn't mean you can throw yourself in a river and expect to live. It's just for battle related things. That also means that you must master most if not all the forms of karate and tai kwon doe.' My father says, gesturing towards him.

'Aw yeah! Spontaneous ninja moves!' my brother says, breaking out into random fighting moves, battling against air, and punching my father playfully.

'You also must master the emotionally side to this too. You need to learn to control your emotions, and most of those forms will teach you that.' Father interrupts, goodheartedly shoving Arsenio away. 'I mean what I said. You can't be breaking in to fights at school, because then everyone will know something's up. And if there are any students out there like Hermione, they won't stop till they figure something out. And if they do, odds are that their parents are Death Eaters, and then the Death Eaters would tell Voldemort, and that would let Voldemort know that Hermione is still alive.' Father says, going on a small, nut very serious rant.

'Ok ok! Chill, I'll just give them a round-house kick then be on my merry way.' Arsenio jokes, conjuring up a dummy with his wand, so he can spar with it.

'Arsenio I'm serious! If anyone at your school finds out, you won't be the only one suffering from it.' Father says curtly. He then gestures to me. I hesitantly walk over to him, then give him my full attention, not like he didn't have it before, but he's going to tell me what the book didn't.

'Hermione, you've got one of the hardest powers to get a hold of, and grasp emotionally. Training your power is going to be very difficult, because according to the masters in the department, each element is based on a different style of fighting. You must master them together.' Father says. He is very brief about describing my power, because I guess he assumes that I read enough about it last night. He then turns to Malik and Arsenio, who were sparring near a tree, but it was more like Malik was standing there, and Arsenio was kicking the crap out of him

'Malik, Arsenio, come here. There's something else.' Father says, adapting a very serious look on his face. That's how Arsenio knew to cut it out. He stopped kicking Malik, and looked over at Father, with a very confused look on his face.

'Father…?' Arsenio began, looking scared.

'Sit down.' Father commands gently, pointing towards the rock.

Cautiously, the three of us sit back down on the rock, and look up at our Father, who wore a very sullen look on his face. 'There was a Death Eater meeting last night, and Voldemort us all of something. He has a hunch, about the triplets. He doesn't know it's you guys, but he knows that they are alive. Which means that you need to stay under cover, and keep your heads down.' He says seriously. But then his whole face lights up. 'But, on the bright side, that means that you all get to learn how to fight.'

'All of us?' Malik questions. 'I know that Arsenio has to, and Mione's elements require it, but why do I have to as well?' he asks.

'What? You don't want to learn how to be a samurai?' Father jokes, smirking down at Malik. 'It's just in case. You can heal people, but will you be able to defend yourself if you disarmed?' he asks. Malik shakes his head. 'That's what I thought. You will have basic fighting training later today. Your master will teach you everything. Mione, you can go too, but your Elemental Masters will teach you your specific fighting techniques for your power. Oh, and Malik?'

Malik looks up. 'I also found professional healers that will help you in your studies. He might be here later, but he is a healer, so you must be patient with him.' Father says, smiling down at us.

Arsenio breaks into laughter, doubled over. Malik and I give him the strangest look, as if he were mental. I think is mental. But, maybe it was just a way to break the tension. 'Arsenio…?' I drawl out, waving my hands in front of his face.

'O-oh… s-sorry.' Arsenio chokes out, gathering himself together. 'Father said patient, healer, patient, get it?' he asks, pointing at nothing.

Malik rolls his eyes. 'Wow dude. We need to get you inside. I think you're going mental from the heat.' He says, while pulling Arsenio up by his shoulders.

'No, no, I'm fine. Father? When is the master coming?' Arsenio asks, gathering himself together completely now.

'I'm not sure. I suppose he will show up whenever he wants.' Father answers truthfully.

'What about my first elemental master? And what am I learning first? And who is it? And what is-'

'One, I have no idea when your elemental master is coming. She would have informed me ahead of time, so maybe later, like tomorrow. And you are learning your natural element first. And who? You're going to have to find out tomorrow.' Father says. He then walks away, out of the woods, leaving me with the answers he gave.

Baffled, I turn to my brothers. 'Well, now what? I mean, I know nothing about fighting.' I say.

Malik shrugs, but Arsenio's face lights up. 'Well, I bet the master will teach you. But, if you want to bury your nose in some book, then be my guest. You know where the library is.' Arsenio says, conjuring up another dummy to practice on.

'Malik? You wanna come with me?' I ask him. He looks at me, at Arsenio, then at the dummy he was punching the crap out of.

'Well… I don't want to be in the same place as that dummy, so, I'm going with you.' He says, deciding he doesn't want to be a human punching bag. Arsenio looks up from beating the dummy into a pulp, and gives Arsenio a fake offended look.

'What? You think I would _hurt _my own _brother? _I'd _never!' _he said, accenting the words "hurt, brother, and never." He put his hand over his heart in mock hurt.

I see Malik roll his eyes. He turns to me and says, 'Ok, let's go. But, what's the point of going to the library? Can't we just let the master teach us whatever we need to know? And…well…-'he cuts off, turning away from me.

'And what?' I ask, prying.

'Books can't teach you how to fight. They only tell you how, so… maybe we could just go inside and play Modern Warfare?' he suggest, hoping he didn't say anything to offend me.

Sure, I admit that hurt a little, knowing that everything I ever learned really only came from books and experience, but I understand what he means. True, you can't learn how to fight by reading a book. 'Ok, let's go. Arsenio? You want to come?' I ask, giving into Malik's offer.

'Sure! I can warm up my fighting abilities by shooting the crap out of virtual people. And maybe, I can blow the limbs off of some too.' He says, his whole face lighting up again.

Malik and I give him a weird look. 'Dude? Is this whole supernatural power thing going to turn you into some kind of assassin? If so, I want nothing to do with it anymore.' Malik says, slightly joking, but truly looked baffled by his brother's words.

'I'm not going to, I promise. I only do that in Modern Warfare. I would never do that to do real humans, especially you guys.' Arsenio laughs. He stops punching his dummy, and walks up to us. 'Who's ready to blow up some evil villains?' he asks, throwing his arms up in mock victory.

I roll my eyes at my brother. 'I'll race you to the game room!' I announce, making a bot for the back door, with my brothers right at my tail.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my plot. But, I would like you to check my page out for a full list of disclaimers. The idea for the story belongs to someone else. Curious to know? Go check it out!**

**A/N: Ahh… sweet reviews. Its awesome waking up to such wonderful reviews, but there is one that I would like to shout back to. **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 22

'ARSEINO! MALIK! HERMIONE! Get down here! NOW!'

'Oh! OH! Did you SEE that?' Arsenio yells, completely ignoring whoever called us. He jumped up on top of the couch, throwing his controller down in victory. He pointed at the screen wildly, jumping up and down in victory.

'Ah stuff it. I, I let you win that time.' Malik said sheepishly, putting his controller down.

'_SURE_ you did. Now, what did Father want?' Arsenio says, calming down. He drops back down on the couch and faces us.

'I'm not- wait! I bet the masters are here!' I squeal excitedly. I put my controller down on the table, and ran out of the room, with my brothers' right behind me. I nearly trip down the stairs on my way down them, but I make it down in one piece. 'Father! Father? Where are you?' I ask, noticing that he isn't waiting at the bottom of the stairs like I thought he would be.

'Here' He says calmly, walking out of the corner to greet us.

'Why'd you call us? Is the master here yet?' Malik asks excitedly, looking wildly around for someone that might be our master.

'Actually, _they _are here.' Father says, gesturing towards the door. Standing there, two relatively young men, and one relatively young woman. The man on the left looked no older than 25. He was very tall, and had shaggy blonde hair that dangled in front of his bright blue eyes. He looked lean, but I could see that huge muscles rippling under his shirt. The man on the right looked on older than maybe 30. He was wearing healer's robes and he had a mousey brown colored hair and shining bright eyes. But the young girl in the middle caught my attention. She too was very tall, but her hair was a very light ivory color, shining in the lighting of the room. Her bright blue eyes were looking down at me, looking very excited.

'These are your masters, and Hermione, this is one of your masters.' Father introduced us. 'Arsenio, come here.' He says, gesturing Arsenio to come closer. Arsenio stepped us, studying the masters that were standing before him. 'Brock.' Father gestured once more, only this time to the young man on the left. The young man on the left walked up to Arsenio and spoke up, in his masculine sounding voice.

'Hey Arsenio! My name is Brock Nathens. I am your fighting master.' Brock said, in almost a playful voice. Arsenio immediately took a liking to him. He stuck out his hand and shook Brock's profusely.

'I'm Arsenio, as you probably know by now. And this is my brother Malik and my sister Hermione. I have another sister but I have no idea where she is right now.' Arsenio introduces us, pointing to us.

'Malik, this is Marc.' Father introduces the man on the right. He steps up and shakes Malik's hand.

'Hello Malik, my name is Marc Allen. I will be teaching you the art of physical healing.' Marc greets him.

**'Figures. I get the master who is just like me, carefree and funny, and you get the one just like you, serious and loving.' **Arsenio jokes, looking at his brother with a cocky sort of smile on his face.

**'Ah stuff it, that's the way I learn.' **Malik retorts back, smiling back at his master. 'It will be an honor to learn under your wisdom.' Malik says to Marc sincerely, bowing before his master.

'It will be my honor to fight under your guidance.' Arsenio says to his master, bowing before his master. Only, he did it with the slight mockery in his voice. But I could tell that he still meant it all the same.

I could hear my father laugh at my brothers, but he turns to the last young women standing in the background. 'Ivory.'

The young women steps back up to the crowd. 'Hello Hermione. My name is Ivory Templesmith.' She greets me, holding her hand out for me to shake.

I feel a rush of gratitude towards the young woman in front of me. I shake her hand, then immediately bow down. 'It will be an honor to learn water bending under your instruction.' I bend down, following my brothers' lead.

'Oh, there's no need for that Hermione!' Ivory laughs at me, lifting my chin up, so I'm looking at her in the face. 'I'm one of you, only a tad older, and a bit more experienced.' She adds, laughing.

All three masters then turn to my Father. 'Shall we start now?' Brock asks.

'Whenever you are ready. I will be in the kitchen, making tea.' Father says, dismissing the masters to begin.

'We will be in the library, studying medicine.' Marc says, leading Malik to the library.

**'Hah! First day in training, and you spend it with your nose in a book!' **Arsenio laughs, pointing at my brother in silent mockery.

**'Shut it! At least I will be prepared. And you can't learn hands on in medicine without knowing what you are doing first! It's different for fighting.' **Malik says, shutting us both us.

'We will be training outside, in the forest. Come on Arsenio! I've got this killer move that will impress anyone! It involves climbing trees and acting like a monkey!' Brock says, acting like a child, gesturing for Arsenio to follow him. Arsenio got the cockiest looking grin on his face as he followed his master outside.

'I guess that leaves us. Where do you want to start?' she asks me, turning to me.

Dumbfounded, I stutter, 'What… well, I don't know…' I always thought that the instructor was supposed to come up with the lessons, or at least what to teach first.

'What do you want to learn first?' she laughs, waiting for my answer. Remaining silent, I shake my head, not knowing what to answer.

'Isn't there anything you want to learn first? Anything that you really want to learn?' she offers, laughing at me.

'Well, I kinda want to know the basics first. I only acted the way I did off of impulse. I didn't know what I was doing.' I answer logically, as always.

'Well let's get to it!' she says cheerfully, walking towards the door, as I follow. 'And by the way, you call that your dormant powers.' She adds.

'Dormant powers?' I ask, walking beside her.

'Yeah, dormant powers are… are…' she trails off, thinking. 'It's a hard thing to put to words. Let's just say, that dormant powers are like a volcano. They only erupt, or emerge when something powerful makes it occur. In this case, the powerful thing that causes dormant powers to emerge is a strong emotion.' She answers, opening the back door, heading to the river in the back.

'So, if I ace my exams, O.W.L.S, and N.E.W.T.S, I could blow the roof off of Hogwarts?' I ask, dumbfounded once again.

'No, actually, that's not the case in any three of you. For Arsenio, it emerges when he's feeling a great sense of pride, loss, anger, confidence, emotions like that. And for Malik, it emerges when he feels a sense of loss, or anxiety, or desperation to save someone, but for Malik, it only occurs when he needs to save someone.' Ivory says.

'So, what about me?' I ask, curiously.

'For you, there's a lot that goes into it. Emotions such as desperation, loss, anger, sadness, depression, anxiety, loss of hope, as a last resort, and desperation to save someone, are all emotions that could make your dormant powers emerge.' She answers; thinking about what might trigger my dormant powers.

'Wow, really?' I ask, surprised. 'So, does that mean we are going to be doing a lot of emotional training?' I ask her.

'Well, yes. But not all of it is going to be with me. It is going to be spread out throughout all of your masters' instruction. You will be harshly trained on your physical and mental endurance. Your father told me all about Voldemort being out to get the Supernatural Triplets. He will be out to get you. And whatever you do, you must control your emotions. If he knows that you are, what's the word, easily influenced, he will use that to his advantage, against all three of you. He will use you to destroy.' She answers, clearly not sugarcoating anything.

'R-really?' I sputter, not believing that I actually might be a bigger target than Harry. 'Well, does that mean I might be a bigger target than Harry Potter?' I ponder aloud, hoping for the answer I know is wrong.

'Maybe. Harry is the wizarding world's symbol for safety. If he's alive, then everyone knows that the war isn't as bad as it could be, because everyone knows that Voldemort is out to destroy him because Harry is the only one that has ever survived the Killing Curse. But for you and your brothers, there is something that Voldemort wants, so he can use it. He wants your powers, just like…' she trails off, glancing away from me.

'Like what?' I ask gently, knowing well enough that this seems like a subject that she doesn't like talking about.

'Just like he wanted me and my friends.' She answers bluntly, but then sighs, knowing that I would probably want her to clarify. 'My friends and I are all elementals. I'm a water elemental, my friend Lucca is an air elemental, Nikko is an earth elemental, and Corvus is a fire elemental. Voldemort found out about us, so he started targeting our families. He, he killed my parents.' She murmured, and with every passing word, she spoke quieter and quieter, until her words were barely above a whisper.

Stunned, I feel a wave of sympathy rush over me, and my eyes begin to bring with small, wet tears. 'Oh, Ivory… I'm-I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked…' I cry, trying to hold my emotions in.

She turns back to me and smiles weakly. 'No, Hermione, it's fine. I suppose that I would have told you sooner or later.'

I don't say anything to her. I just turn my head down, and think about what she told me. I walk over to the lake, and sit down by it, facing down. 'Ivory?' I ask her quietly. 'Do you think that will happen to my family? If either me or one of my brothers' make one mistake, we could all end up injured?' I ask quietly.

She sits down next to me. 'To be honest, it is a very possible thing Hermione, but tell me, when was the last time you ever did anything wrong?' she jokes.

I feel my frown break into a smile, the corners of my lips pulling up slightly. 'I guess you're right, but what happens if I do make a mistake? Then would everyone suffer because of my mistake?' I ask again.

'I don't know Mione, if I were you, I would ask Harry about all of this stuff. He is going through almost exactly what you are. If he does something wrong, it could kill millions. That is a lot of pressure to put on a fourteen year old. But, like Harry, both you and he have loyal friends that will help you through this.' She answers, trying her best to be supportive, but there is one thing standing in her way of being successful.

'But, Ivory, Harry doesn't know.' I respond bluntly, turning back to the lake.

Her question is only one word, but it says everything that it needs to. 'Why?'

Why Harry doesn't know? 'I… I've just been… s-scared to tell him or any of my other friends for that matter…' I trail off again, as I feel the tears brim my bottom eyelids.

'Why?' Damn her and her stupid effective one word questions.

'Because… it's... we've always held this grudge against my father, and Father is a spy, but he is a death eater, and that won't do good, I mean, t-that won't come across well with them. T-they w-wou-ld th-think I'm a, a t-traitor.' I stutter, the tears slowing flowing down my face.

I hear her sigh patiently. 'Hermione, you know that you are going to have to tell him sooner or later. The sooner you do it, the better. The longer you drag it out, the more offended they are going to be that you haven't told them.' Ivory tries to reason.

'But... t-they a-are g-going to th-think I'm a t-traitor!' I cry, the tears flowing fast down my face.

She asks one question, only with four words, but she couldn't have asked a better, clearer question if she tried. 'Do you trust him?'

I give her a look of sheer confusion. 'What? Of course I do!' I exclaim, dumbfound by her question.

A smile slowly spreads across her face. 'Well? Then what's the problem?'

'The problem is my life took a 180 degree turn in the opposite direction! I'm not some certain muggle-born girl with buck teeth and untamable brown hair anymore! I'm some pureblood, daughter of Severus Snape, sister of the Malik and Arsenio, together making the Supernatural Triplets, and I'm friends with the people that tortured me for the past three years! My life doesn't make any sense to me anymore!' I scream, finally breaking down.

But Ivory doesn't seem frazzled by what I said, if anything, she remains sympathetic. 'But you've seemed fine before, what changed now?' she asks gently.

Crying heavily now, I try my best to think about why. 'B-because… u-up until n-now, I haven't r-realized the d-danger t-that is r-really involved in t-this.' I splutter, hugging my knees closer to me, as I study my own crying reflection in the lake.

'It's been like a dream to you?' she supplies.

'Y-yeah… I su-suppose so.' I murmur. I look down at my reflection. This isn't the same girl I grew up with. She's gone, and she's never coming back. It's back to square one. I have to start all over again, as a Snape, not a Granger. I adapt to my new life. Changing lives at fourteen is tough, especially when you're hounded with the responsibility of being a supernatural triplet.

**'Hermione? Are you ok?' **I hear Arsenio's faint voice float around in my head.

**'Yeah, we felt a huge wave of sadness rush over us.' **Malik adds, soundingworried.

**'Sadness, confusion, and helplessness.' **Arsenio adds, he too sounding concerned.

**'I'm…fine. Just, uh... having a mental break down…' ** I trail off, not feeling the need to add anymore, because I can feel the questions speeding towards me.

**'What? Why?' **Malik asks, sounding concerned, but the curiosity in his voice was not undetectable.

**'Because… I… I now know that we are the lasting barrier between Voldemort and our families! If we put one toenail out of line, hundreds or thousands could end up dead. It's because of us. We are in charge of thousands of lives. Voldemort won't stop at anything until he gets us on his side, or until we are dead.' **I tell them, moping in my own realization of how bad things are.

** 'Yeah, that's what Brock just told me.' **Arsenio says.

'**Yeah, that's what Marc told me too.' **Malik informs me.

**'So? What do you guys think about it?' **I ask them weakly.

**'Well, I have accepted what I have to do, and who I am. And, there isn't anything anyone can do to change that. But, it's almost, a surreal kind of thing. I mean, this doesn't happen to everyone. I mean, I think it's how Harry feels the whole time. The whole thing is very surreal to me.' **Malik says, sounding a lot older and wiser than he should.

**'As for me, I haven't accepted it yet, but I know that there is something that we are responsible for upholding. I don't like it any more than you guys do.' **Arsenio says.

**'Well, I guess I need to learn to accept it then.' **I say, pulling out. _Suck it UP! Hermione Granger doesn't cry! _I yell to myself. But, I'm not Hermione Granger anymore, I'm Hermione Snape._ I am Hermione Snape, and I WILL pull through this!_

'So, now that you know of the danger, what are you going to do?' Ivory asks, turning to me with a bright smile on her face.

'I'm gonna train. Hard. Voldemort, you're going DOWN!' I yell at nothing, pumping my fists in the air, feeling a sense of strength surge through me. I hear Ivory laugh at me.

'That's the spirit Hermione. Now, where do you want to start?' Ivory asks, obviously amused with my 180 emotion flip.

I start to wonder where the best place to start is. 'Ivory? Where do you think the best place to start is?' I ask her again, forgetting that I asked her that before.

'Like I said, the best place to start, would be with some emotional training, but, it seems like you can handle that on your own, so let's start with some water bending basics shall we?'

**ARSENIO'S POV**

Brock was practically skipping down the stairs on our way outside. 'So! Arsenio! Where do you want to start? I would suggest the beating-the-living-crap-out-of-people. That's, like, the best part about being a fighter.' He exclaims, hopping down into the forest.

I know I'm the hyper one out of the four of us, but I don't think I've ever been like that, not really. 'Oh, well, I thought that you had this planned out.' I state, giving him that "you're an idiot" kind of look.

Brock turns serious, all traces of joking evaporated from his face. 'I do Arsenio, I promise you that. I am the one person responsible for teaching you everything you need to know. This isn't exactly something to joke about, even though I must admit, I probably act like I'm fourteen sometimes.' He pauses, thinking back to his attitude five minutes ago. 'But, the whole situation in general isn't something to joke about.' He says on a more serious note.

'Why? I mean…' I trail off, trying to think back to what Mione told me earlier.

'Because, Harry Potter isn't Voldemort's only target anymore. Voldemort wants you three under his control. Do you realize how powerful you can be under his influence?' he asks very, very seriously.

'No…' I trail off again, waiting for him to continue.

'He can, and will be able to control your every emotion. Ever heard of your dormant powers? Those awaken when you feel an extreme emotion, such as swelled confidence, or over-ridden with grief. He will make you see things that will trigger your dormant powers, and once you're in the dormant state, there is no controlling who you are or what you do anymore.' Brock informs me, looking at me dead in the eye, absolutely all trace of humor gone.

'Does that mean that… controlling my emotions is a key part to mastering the fighting?' I ask him, with nothing but seriousness in my voice as well.

'If anything, I think it is the most important part of mastering anything.' Brock confirms.

I open my mouth to respond, but something else knocks the wind out of me. It felt like someone took a giant metal fist and drove it into my gut. I grunt, and bend over forward. Brock is by my side in an instant. 'Arsenio? Are you ok?' he asks, putting his hand on my back, straitening me up.

Suddenly, I felt an extreme sadness rush over me like a giant tsunami. Sadness, confusion, and helplessness. _Hermione… _I trail off.

**'Hermione? Are you ok?' **I try and ask Hermione, feeling my voice shove through her normally over-crowded mind.

**'Yeah, we felt a huge wave of sadness rush over us.' **Malik joins in, soundingworried too.

**'Sadness, confusion, and helplessness.' **I add, noting that my voice sounds just as concerned and worried as Malik's. Good.

**'I'm…fine. Just, uh... having a mental break down…' ** I hear her trail off, but I get the feeling that she isn't telling us everything.

**'What? Why?' **Malik asks, voicing my unspoken questions.

**'Because… I… I now know that we are the lasting barrier between Voldemort and our families! If we put one toenail out of line, hundreds or thousands could end up dead. It's because of us. We are in charge of thousands of lives. Voldemort won't stop at anything until he gets us on his side, or until we are dead.' **Hermione screams at us, as I feel another wave of depression, confusion, and desperation drown me.

** 'Yeah, that's what Brock just told me.' **I say, telling my siblings that my mentor told me, and that I know exactly what she is talking about.

'**Yeah, that's what Marc told me too.' **Malik informs us.

**'So? What do you guys think about it?' **she asks us weakly.

**'Well, I have accepted what I have to do, and who I am. And, there isn't anything anyone can do to change that. But, it's almost, a surreal kind of thing. I mean, this doesn't happen to everyone. I mean, I think it's how Harry feels the whole time. The whole thing is very surreal to me.' **Malik says. Boy, Malik sure sounds a lot older than he should. I guess he gets it from Mother.

**'As for me, I haven't accepted it yet, but I know that there is something that we are responsible for upholding. I don't like it any more than you guys do.' **I say solemnly, hoping my sister notes that she isn't alone.

**'Well, I guess I need to learn to accept it then.' **she says, abruptly pulling out.

**'I hope she's ok. I mean, she has it harder than we do.' **Malik says.

**'I hope she's ok too. And it's because that she transitions families' right?' ** I ask him, just to clarify.

**'Well yeah! You would be too!' **Malik exclaims, sounding baffled.

**'Ok ok! Sorry. Didn't mean to offend you.' **I joke.

**'Yeah I know. Well, I've got to go, Marc is waiting on me.' ** Malik says, and with that, he pulls out, leaving me alone.

'Arsenio?' Brock tries again, waving his hand in front of my face.

'Huh?' I say intelligently. 'Oh, sorry. My sister was upset, so I was talking with her. She's just, having a hard time gripping what is happening to her. She was fine with it, up until now, when she learned about the huge responsibility that was put on all of us.' I tell him, filling him in on everything that happened.

'I would too. Going from one life style to another is tough, especially when they are polar opposites, such as hers.' Brock agrees. 'But, from what I heard, she's a brilliant girl. She will find a way to pull through this. And look, she's got the help of almost everyone she knows.'

'Everyone that knows her secret.' I mumble, almost reluctantly. I wish just as much as she does that at least Harry knew. Harry is a great guy, and he's kinda going through the same thing, right?

'Well, I can almost promise you, she will be telling Harry soon. The longer she holds it in, the more she's going to explode when she does. But what about her other friends? She has other friends that I'm sure would want to know as well.' Brock asks.

'Yeah, she told me about the Weasley's. But from what she told me, the 2nd youngest is a… a… loose cannon, with his emotions sometimes.' I laugh.

'She's got a kick arse brother that will help if he loses it. Now, if you want to kick the kid, you gotta learn something first.' Brock says, getting into fighting position.

'Well? Aren't you going to teach me something first?' I ask, giving him that almost parent like gaze.

'I believe in learning off of experience.' Brock says, and with that being his only warning, he lunges forward, and locks his right leg behind mine, pushing me forward, flat on my face.

'Ow…' I moan, feeling my leg is under his whole body weight's worth of pressure, and let me tell you, it isn't a pleasant feeling.

'Try harder.' Brock instructs me, shoving more of his body weight onto my shoulders, making it that much harder for me to shake him off. 'And no cheating. If your eyes turn golden, you won't learn anything. Control your emotions.'

_No pride, no confidence. _I instruct myself, gathering myself. _Calm down, and focus on getting his weight off of you. _I push my knees under me, and shove my weight upward, throwing him off my back. I then quickly scramble to my feet, tripping over them in the process.

'Good.' Brock praises me. 'But be lighter on your feet. You don't want your opponent to see you off balance, because he can do this.' He says, lunging forward once again, jumping up in the air, knocking me in the chest, pushing me over once more, only this time, on my sore back.

He lands on the ground next to me. I know he might already expect this, but it's worth a shot. Swinging around on my wrist, I stick my left leg out, catching his ankle, pulling him to the ground next to me. He lands on his back with a low thud. I jump off my hands, and jump over him, pinning him to the ground. I'm holding his legs down with my own two legs, and my right arm is pinning his arms down, leaving my left arm to pin his heck to the ground. I search his eyes to make sure I didn't break anything, but his bright blue eyes show impression.

'I'm impressed. You caught on very quickly.' He praises me. 'But, you don't know everything yet boy.' He smirks. And with that, he rips his legs out from under my grip, and digs his feet into my chest, shoving me upward. I land hard on my back, and he walks over to me, standing over me. 'Don't worry, I cast a simple pain removal spell before we started, but you will feel it later. Now get up, you've got more to experience.'

**MALIK'S POV**

Marc leads me silently down to the library. I follow straight behind him, wondering what my siblings are doing right now. I really feel nothing from either one right now, so I guess they are talking to their mentors right now. Kinda wish mine would talk… 'Mr. Allen-?'

'Just call me Marc, Malik, and yes?' he corrects me, stopping in front of the giant double doors that lead to the family library.

'Oh, well I was just going to ask, what side of healing are you going to teach me?' I ask, truly wanting to know. Like all things, there should be two sides to healing… _Shut up! You're starting to sound like Mione! _I scold myself, shaking my head.

'I'm here to teach you the physical side of healing first.' Marc answers, pushing the double doors open, letting the scent of old books rush into my nose.

'Isn't somebody going to teach me the emotional side?' I ask him. 'Because, emotion is just as important to healing too, right?' I ask him again.

'Yes, there will be someone coming to teach you, just not today. She had a family emergency. But, don't get me wrong; learning the physical side of healing is going to teach you how to control your emotions. Trying to heal someone when your mind is fogged with panic and worry isn't going to get you anywhere.' Marc jokes and smiles at me. I can feel myself warming up to him. _At least I know he's got somewhat of a sense of humor._

'But, on a more serious note, we need to talk about… well, you and your siblings.' Marc says his serious face present once more.

'What about them?' I ask, not really paying attention. I scan the row of books, looking for something about healing.

'Well, there's no point in putting it lightly. Voldemort and his followers are after you. There is something that you possess that he wants under his wing. The powers you three possess are something that he can use to further obtain power.' Marc says.

'How would he do that?' I ask nonchalantly, breezing my fingers over the spines of old books.

'You know your dormant powers?' Marc smirks. I suppose he knew that would catch my wandering attention. I avert my attention from the books to him.

'Yeah… I do. What about them?' I ask him, walking over to the couch that he was sitting at. I sit across from him, and wait for him to continue.

'If Voldemort has you and your siblings under his power, he will be able to implant things in your mind, to trigger your dormant powers. After that, there is nothing that will be able to stop you. You three will be unstoppable.' Marc says seriously.

That shuts me up. 'What? Really? But, how can I hurt people? My power is healing.' I say, trying to convince myself that I can't do anything to harm people.

'Malik, if you can heal people, you can harm them.' Marc states, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

'But how?' I push on, trying to find out.

'It's something that you will learn. You will be able to control the cells in a person's body. But, in the way that we are going to teach you, you only command them to heal. You will also be able to create blood, heal tissue, and even stitch up large gashes without anything but your hands.' He pauses, making sure I get everything. I only nod, showing him that I get everything. 'But, under the influence of Voldemort, you will be able to do things you were never taught, such as tearing people from the inside out.' He continues, very seriously.

'But HOW?' I stress the word how.

'It's like how you healed your sister. You didn't mean to. Voldemort will plant images in your mind, possibly about the people he wants you to kill killing YOUR family, setting you on a rage, and killing the people that he implanted in your mind.' Marc continues, his efforts of trying to get me to understand clearly straining on his face.

The full prospect of my power sinks in. 'You mean, I have the power to turn someone inside out?' I ask weakly. But before Marc has the chance to respond, I feel a sudden knock of extreme sadness, shock, and confusion. I double over, and clutch my head. I hear Marc's faint voice try to ask me something, but I don't hear him.

**'Hermione? Are you ok?' **I hear Arsenio ask, sounding worried as well. It was good to know that I wasn't feeling things.

**'Yeah, we felt a huge wave of sadness rush over us.' **I add in, wanting to know what happened.

**'Sadness, confusion, and helplessness.' **Arsenio latches on. I can tell that he is trying to defuse something, but it didn't work.

**'I'm…fine. Just, uh... having a mental break down…' ** she mumbles weakly, trailing off, obviously not wanting

**'What? Why?' **Malik asks, voicing my unspoken questions.

**'Because… I… I now know that we are the lasting barrier between Voldemort and our families! If we put one toenail out of line, hundreds or thousands could end up dead. It's because of us. We are in charge of thousands of lives. Voldemort won't stop at anything until he gets us on his side, or until we are dead.' **Hermione screams at us, as I feel another wave of depression, confusion, and desperation drown me.

** 'Yeah, that's what Brock just told me.' **I say, telling my siblings that my mentor told me, and that I know exactly what she is talking about.

'**Yeah, that's what Marc told me too.' **Malik informs us.

**'So? What do you guys think about it?' **she asks us weakly.

**'Well, I have accepted what I have to do, and who I am. And, there isn't anything anyone can do to change that. But, it's almost, a surreal kind of thing. I mean, this doesn't happen to everyone. I mean, I think it's how Harry feels the whole time. The whole thing is very surreal to me.' **I confess to them. Now I know how Harry feels most of the time. Boy, I'm glad that I had a normal childhood for most of my life. Well, as normal as it can be when your sister was kidnapped from you and forgot all about you.

**'As for me, I haven't accepted it yet, but I know that there is something that we are responsible for upholding. I don't like it any more than you guys do.' **Arsenio says solemnly. Good, at least I know that I'm not alone.

**'Well, I guess I need to learn to accept it then.' **she says curtly, pulling out directly after.

**'I hope she's ok. I mean, she has it harder than we do.' **I say to my brother.

**'I hope she's ok too. And it's because that she transitions families' right?' ** Arsenio asks me. Oh no, he did not just ask that. Wow, sometimes he can be really thick.

**'Well yeah! You would be too!' **I exclaim, my thoughts come through my voice.

**'Ok ok! Sorry. Didn't mean to offend you.' **Arsenio jokes, laughing at me.

**'Yeah I know. Well, I've got to go, Marc is waiting on me.' ** I say, then pull out after, noticing Marc's nervous face next to me. 'Sorry, I was, talking with my siblings. My sister got really upset, so we were just asking if she was ok.

'I find that fascinating by the way that you are able to talk to your siblings through your mind. And is she ok? Your father filled me in, on what she's going through.' Marc asks.

'Yeah, she's fine. She's just confused.' I tell him.

'Well, give her my best, when you talk to her next.' Marc asks of me. I smile at him, letting him know that his sympathy is well accepted. 'So, back to what I was talking about. It is actually your decision, whether or not if you want to learn how to…' he trails off, hoping I catch what he's talking about. I do.

'Um… well…' I mutter, turning away, trying to weigh the pros and cons in my head. It's definitely a good thing to have in your back pocket, but having the power to turn someone _inside out _is not only nasty on so many levels, but it's evil! 'I suppose so… but how would we practice?' I ask him.

A faint smile spreads across Marc's lips, showing that he approves of my answer. 'Hello Malik, you are a wizard. We will just conjure something to practice on.' He laughs at my ignorance.

'Oh… right…' I trail off, embarrassed. 'So, I can assume that we aren't starting with that?'

He stops laughing, but the smile is still on his face. 'Oh no, of course not. You aren't ready to do anything as advanced as that yet, but trust me, if you want to learn how to do it, you will learn.' Marc promises.

'Alright! Let's get started!' I exclaim, listening as Marc jumps into an introduction to the physical side of healing.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

'Come on Hermione… just try and focus on every single molecule of water.' Ivory instructs me gently. _Yeah, focus on __every __single droplet of water. Yeah, I can wrap my head around that! _I say sarcastically to myself, but I pull myself together, and concentrate on the water in the lake. I will myself to command the water to move in my command. I slowly raise my hands above the water, and strain my fingers, bending them slightly. I close my eyes, and concentrate. Slowly dripping down my face, sweat from the smoldering sun beats down on my face. But suddenly, the resistance the water put up gave up. Eyes snapping open, they jerk open, and they are met with a floating bubble of water. 'Ivory! I did it!' I exclaim, momentarily slipping in my concentration. In result, the small floating bubble crashes back into the lake, making small ripples in the lake. 'Aww…' I moan, slumping in exhaustion and disappointment.

'It's fine Hermione. That was excellent progress for one day.' Ivory praises me, walking over to me. 'Here, hold on.' She says. I look up, to see that she is water bending a small bubble of water over to my head. I raise my eyebrow to her, giving her that "really?" look.

'Sorry, but here, drink up.' She says. I feel my eyebrow raises higher. 'Just stick your mouth on it.' She instructs me, laughing at my ignorance. Ok, maybe it's not ignorance, but it was definitely confusion. Hesitantly, I stick my mouth on it, and drink the floating water. Cool and refreshing, the fresh water pours down my throat. I hear her laugh at me. 'Good isn't it?' she asks me.

I only moan in contentment. 'Ok, you're down for the day. You can go relax.' She tells me. She bends the water back into the lake.

'So, when is our next training session?' I ask her, wiping the sweat off my brow.

'Um… your brothers' masters and I got permission from Dumbledore to let us train with you while you are at school. Apparently we are teaching a family of over-achievers. You are so far ahead in your studies, it doesn't even matter.' She answers, smiling at me.

'Really? Awesome!' I exclaim. Together, we start walking back up to the house.

'Ok, you go inside and relax. I will just catch your father up on what we did, then I have to leave.' She tells me.

'Oh, ok. I'll see you later then Ivory!' I exclaim. I shoot her a quick smile before she strides down the hallway, in search for my father. I then collapse on the couch, and moan out in pain, the pain that I didn't feel before due to the adrenaline is seeping back in. Learning tai chi is one of the toughest things I've ever done. I slowly begin to close my eyes loud slam of the back door jerks me awake.

'Thanks… Brock…' I hear my brother murmur.

'Welcome. Now, I will see you again in a couple of days, when you're back at school. I'm just going to go fill your father in. Then, I'm going to go. Practice those moves?' he asks, pointing to Arsenio.

'Yeah… s-sure.' Arsenio agrees weakly, clutching his stomach. Brock nods in approval, then leaves the room. Once Brock leaves, Arsenio limps onto the couch, and sits next to me, moaning in pain.

'You got it rough too?' I ask him. All he does is nod, still clutching his stomach.

'He decided the best way to learn is by _experience.' _Arsenio says as savagely as he can, which isn't very strong. It still sounds like a forced whisper.

'What did he do?' I ask.

'Ok, you know how we started midafternoon, like around one-ish?' Arsenio asks. I nod, taking note of the time. It was 8:30 pm. 'Well, for the past seven hours, he's been pounding the living shit out of me for the past seven hours. I mean sure, he casted this pain removal spell on me, but he _just _took it off, now I feel…' he trails off, not being able to find the right word.

'Crappy, beat up, like pulp, bruised, neglected, out of breath, injured…' I list some adjectives for him, giving him my weakest smirk I could. Telling over one trillion water molecules to do obey your every command takes a lot out of you.

'Yeah, somewhere along the lines of that…' he mutters through his groan. Suddenly, calmer sounding footsteps resonated through the hallway.

Malik walks in, looking as brain dead as Malik. 'Hey guys.' He says quietly.

'I'm going to go fill your father in.' Marc says, then walks out of the room, leaving us alone. Malik walks over to us, and plops down on the couch in a similar manner as Arsenio. 'Hey guys.' He says again, only quieter.

'Hey Malik. You tired too?' I ask him, turning my head towards him.

'Physically, no, not this time. My brain is cursing me for making it memorize all those healing antics, from the books and Marc's lectures…' Malik tells us, while rubbing his temple, trying to quiet his throbbing brain.

'Hey, can you shut your brain up? It's giving me a headache.' Arsenio snaps at Malik.

'I'm trying I'm trying. What about you? What did your mentors make you do?' Malik asks, trying his best to calm his aching mind.

'Well, mine beat the living crap out of me.' Arsenio snips, the agitation in his voice rings very clearly.

'And mine told me to manipulate one kabillion water molecules with my mind, commanding them to do what I say.' I say curtly. I hear my brother laugh meekly at me.

'I bet your brain is cursing you out too.' He laughs.

'Brain and muscles.' I agree.

'Well for me, it's just my muscles.' Arsenio agrees. 'And there is one more thing we can all agree on.' Arsenio states.

Malik and I turn to him without an answer, but he answers our unspoken question. 'Being the supernatural triplets absolutely sucks.'

'I second that.' Malik and I simultaneously agree, laughing. Arsenio joins in the laughter. I didn't notice that Father walked in and sit on the couch across from us.

'So? How was everyone's first day of training?' he smirked. And I could tell by the smirk that was etched on his face that he already knew exactly how our training went, he just wanted to hear it from us.

'You wanna know how my training went?' Arsenio asked exasperatedly, shooting up from his slumped over to position to where he was sitting up straight, looking Father dead in the eye. 'My mentor decided to teach me a lesson, _on my face!' _He exclaimed making an over exaggerated motion to his purpling eye. 'And _every other part of my body!' _he punctuates each word with another exaggerated motion to bruising spots on his body.

'Mine made me memorize every healing technique in every _damn _book in that _damn_ library! And he gave me a _four hour _lecture on the healing powers of the _wand!_ 'Like I didn't get enough of that in school!' Malik exclaims, shooting up from his slumped position to stand up, looking down at Father.

'And I got the wonderful privilege of manipulating a kabillion microscopic water molecules to do what I say, with my _mind!' _I punctuate the word mind very harshly.

Father just looks at us like he's watching the greatest comedy show on earth. 'So, you had fun?' he asks almost in an innocent type tone.

'_NO!' _We all exclaim simultaneously, giving Father looks of pure incredulity.

'Trust me, when you get better at it, you will absolutely love it.' He tries to reassure us, but the looks of skepticism still plastered on our faces. 'Oh, and Mione, I've got some news for you.' He waits till I turn and look at him before he continues. 'You got a letter from the Weasley's; they want you over at the burrow tomorrow.'

'Tomorrow? But it's 8:45! What time do I have to be there? And, I hardly have anytime to pack!' I shout, furious for one of two reasons. One, I had less than twenty four hours' notice and two, it just seems too early to leave my family, even though I've been here for two weeks.

'One, you're a wizard, just magically pack your stuff, and two, you will still see everyone at school.' Father says, laughing at me.

'Oh shit!' Malik shouts, shooting up again. We look up at him, curious as to why he just cursed to the point where people across the street could hear him. 'The 2nd task! I totally forgot about it!' He turns to me, smiling at me. 'Mia… luv… can you help me?'

My face is etched in confusion. 'How?' I ask him. He doesn't answer. He just runs up stairs, and reappears a couple of minutes later with the golden egg cradled in his arms. It dawns on me exactly what he wants me to do. 'Please?' he begs me. 'I totally forgot what the thing told me.'

'But, Malik, you know how hard it is…' I trail off, hoping he doesn't make me.

'Practice makes perfect.' He states. He strides over to me, grabs my wrist, and drags me towards the door. Arsenio follows.

He drags me outside, and we walk in complete silence until we get to the lake. 'Please Mione…' he begs me again.

'Fine! No guarantees though.' I say, walking over to the lake. I close my eyes, and focus on the water below me. The way it ripples in the wind, glimmers in the sunlight, and struggles against my command. I reach my hands out, and relax my fingers, unlike last time. I strain them slightly, and I feel my whole body relax. Suddenly, the struggle of the water ended, and I opened my eyes to see a floating bubble of water, right below my hands.

'Hermione! You did it!' Arsenio congratulates me. Malik echoes him.

'Mione! Thank you so much!' Malik exclaims.

'Just put it in!' I shout, sounding excited that I could talk and water bend at the same time. Malik nods, and drops the egg in. The bubble does become considerably heavier, but I am able to keep it up.

_'Come seek us where our voices sound,  
>We cannot sing above the ground,<br>And while you're searching, ponder this;  
>We've taken what you'll sorely miss,<br>An hour long you'll have to look,  
>And recover what we took,<br>But past an hour - the prospect's black,  
>Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.<em>' 

Malik retrieves the egg out of the water, and I throw the water ball back into the lake, creating a ripple in the moon lit lake. 'Thank you Hermione.' He thanks me. He walks up to me and hugs me. 'Thank you thank you. Now…' he pauses, releasing me. 'Can you help me figure out what it means?' he asks.

'Sure, Arsenio and I will help. And maybe we can get Ara and Father to help too.' Arsenio nods in agreement. 'But, hold on a moment, I want to write to Ivory, telling her I figured out how to properly water bend. Come on!' I say, grabbing both Arsenio's wrist and Malik's, and begin to drag them back to the house.

The family room was empty. 'You two can head up to your room. I'll be right there.' I say. They both nod, then run out of the room, leaving me to head to the library down the hall.

I push open the double doors, and walk over to the desk, and pull out a fresh, crisp piece of parchment. I dip my quill in ink, and begin to write.

Dear Ivory,

I did it! I figured out how to water bend properly! It's all about relaxing of the mind and body! I had to help my brother, and I decided to relax this time, and it took less time to get the water to rise! Just thought I should tell you.

-Hermione S.

'Mia!' I whistle, calling out to my owl. Almost a second after, my loyal black barn owl comes flying through the window, hooting happily. 'Hey! I need you to deliver this to Ivory Templesmith please.' I ask her. She hoots as I tie my letter to her leg, and she flies off. I watch her fly off into the moonlight, then I head straight to Malik's room, when it strikes me, I've never been to Malik's room. Well, there's a first time for everything I suppose. I head up the spiral staircase, and head down the hallway, straight towards the end.

I open the door, and find my brothers lounging, sprawled out across Malik's bed. 'Ah, I see you found my room.' Malik says, toying with the latch on his golden egg.

'Yes, yes I did. Now, the lyrics of the song…' I say, going immediately into focus mode. 'Come seek us where our voices sound, we cannot sing above the ground, and while you're searching, ponder this; we've taken what you'll sorely miss. An hour long you'll have to look, and recover what we took. But past an hour - the prospect's black, too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' I recite to myself.

'Sounds pretty goth and melodramatic to me.' Arsenio jokes. 'What does that remind me of…' he trails off in thought, but it has nothing to do with the subject at hand.

'I don't know, I think it's that series about forbidden love or something, that series that all the muggle girls are obsessed with.' Malik jokes back, smiling.

_Come seek our voices sound, we cannot sing above the ground. _'Well ok, the 2nd task has something to do with going under water, or swimming.' I tell them, filling them in on what I think. They say nothing relevant, they just keep debating about the series they were talking about, so I keep going.

_And while you're searching ponder this; we've taken what you'll sorely miss. _Sorely miss? Like a belonging, or a person? Surely they wouldn't risk someone's life, right? 'Ok, and I think it has something to do with searching for something, something close to you.' I say, speaking to air. I know they are listening, but they don't say anything back.

_An hour long you'll have to look and recover what we took. _'And it seems as though you have an hour to find whatever the things took.' I tell them. _But past an hour, the prospect's black, too late, it's gone, it won't come back. _'And whatever they take, if you don't find it within an hour, that thing will be gone forever.' I say, realizing that this whole thing sounds very scary.

'Yeah, but what are they taking?' Malik asks. Well, at least I know that he was listening.

'I don't know. But whatever it is, it is something that you will sorely miss' I say, really thinking about what he could sorely miss.

'Well, that's good enough for me. You still have to go and pack. You want some help?' Malik asks, standing up. Arsenio stands up and follows him.

'Nah, I think I'm fine. I mean, just a flick of the wand and everything is ready to go.' I say, heading towards the door. 'Night.' I say to them.

'Night Mione.' Arsenio says, walking past me, heading to his own room.

'Might luv.' Malik says, heading into his shower. I head into my own room, and pull my trunk out from under my bed. With the flick of my wand, everything magically floats into my trunk, and it snaps shut. Satisfied, I pull my trunk to the door of my room, and head into my own shower.

(Next Morning)

The bright morning sun shines through the stain glass in my room, waking me up. I sit up, and stretch. _Today, I leave for the Weasley's. _I inwardly groan, just upset about leaving my family. I get out of bed, and walk over to my dresser, and get dressed in some skinny jeans and a white t-shirt with some black converse and grab my trunk to head downstairs.

'Morning Hermione!' Ara greets me. She's sitting at the table with Father and my brothers.

'Hey guys.' I greet them. 'What time do I have to be over at the Weasley's?' I ask them, sitting down, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl in the center of the table.

'Um… nine. The train for school leaves for at 11:30.' Father says. I look at the wall clock and it reads 8:45. 'Aw crap… I gotta leave.' I say dejectedly. I head towards the fireplace with my trunk. 'I'll see you guys at school.' I say. I walk away from the fireplace, and give Malik a hug. 'See you at school.' I let go of him, and move to Arsenio. I engulf him in a hug. After Arsenio, I hug Father. 'I'll see you all later.'

'Bye Mione.' Malik and Arsenio say simultaneously. I wave goodbye to them, then grab a handful of the bright green dust sitting in a small cup. 'The Burrow!' I say clearly. The last look of my family I saw before the green flames engulfed me, was them waving goodbye to me.

For the first time in my history, I land gracefully on my feet, on the old dirty rug at the base of the fireplace. 'Hey guys!' I say, smiling to all the Weasley's and Harry.

'Hey Hermione! Have a good vacation?' Ron asks.

I freeze. 'W-what? W-what are you talking about? D-did you h-hear s-something?' I sputter. 'W-whatever y-you he-heard wa-was a, a lie!' I sputter again, while mentally kicking myself. _Way to make it believable. _

Harry caught it in a heartbeat. 'Hermione? Are you ok?' he asks, suspicious of something.

Ron, on the other hand, was being his normal oblivious self. 'Ah Harry, she's just nervous about going back to school, with the second task and everything. She's just nervous.' Ron fills in for me, which only results in another spike in my nervousness.

'N-nervous? W-why would I-I be nervous? T-there's n-nothing t-to be w-worried a-about! Worry f-free z-zone h-here!' I rant, smiling like a maniac to fanatically try and cover up my lie.

'Harry is going to compete in the second task….? Remember…? Mental break down… any of this ringing a bell?' Ron asks, adopting a look of suspicion on his face as well.

I kick myself mentally, again. _Duh! Your best friend is in the same tournament as your brother! How could you be so… _stupid? 'Yeah, I know. It's just, I am beyond nervous for Harry. Beyond nervous. I mean what if he gets hurt? Or what if some horrid creature takes him under?' I ask more calmly this time, getting my facts straight.

Ron seems to believe me, because his face returns to his normal goofy grin, but Harry doesn't seem so convinced, at least, not yet. 'Are you sure Hermione?' Harry asks seriously.

'Yes Harry, I'm sure. I just don't want you hurt, or that Malik kid either.' I answer, but then I remember, that Ron doesn't know that we are friends with Malik.

'Wait, that Snape kid? Since when are you friends with him?' Ron asks.

'Scratch that, since when do you two forgive each other?' I ask, remembering that they were fighting before winter break.

'Oh, I stormed over to the Burrow, demanding that Ron listen to me, but he wasn't home, so Mrs. Weasley made me dinner. Then Ron came home, then I forced him to listen, then he forgave me when I drilled it into his thick brain that I have no idea who put my name in the Goblet.' Harry answers, chuckling.

'Oi! My skull isn't that thick!' Ron exclaims, running his fingers through his flaming ginger hair.

'Ron, it so is. Don't deny it.' I say, giggling.

Harry pauses and then stands up. 'Let's go play some Quidditch.' He declares. Ron stands up and nods.

'Let's go find my brothers first. Then we go outside.' Ron adds. They leave the room, completely forgetting about my presence, and leave to go find the rest of the Weasley's are at the house. I laugh at them, and then go off into my trunk, to find something to read while they fly around their broomsticks for the next four to eight hours.

The next day, I don't wake up in my comfortable satin like sheets of my house, but in the familiar scratchy ones of the Weasley house. I yawn, and stretch, and notice that Ginny isn't in her bed, which means that she is already up. I quickly get dressed in my skinny jeans and white t-shirt and head downstairs. 'Ginny?' I question into the downstairs rooms

'In here!' she calls from the kitchen. I walk over to where the kitchen was, at the end of the hallway, and enter the room, where Ginny was sitting at the table with her twin brothers and Harry.

'Ron not up yet?' I ask anyone.

'Nah, not yet at least.' Harry answers, taking a bite out his apple.

'You can take some for the train ride if you want Harry.' Ginny laughs, handing about half a dozen more apples to Harry.

'Really? YES!' he exclaims, taking the apples, and making them smaller so they fit in his plastic bag.

Mrs. Weasley walks into the kitchen, and scans the room to make sure all of her children are there. 'Oh, where is Ron?' she asks, sounding slightly amused.

'Still snoring on his pillow.' Fred says. Ginny, Harry, George and I snicker.

'I'll go wake him up for you Mrs. Weasley.' I volunteer.

'Oh, can I go too?' Ginny asks, as the other three nod in agreement.

'Yeah, I want to go. The last two times you did it, it sounded like the funniest thing ever.' Fred says, smiling broadly. I nod to them, and then lead them upstairs.

We creep in on Ron's room, and I tell them to wait there. I look around, and find what I'm looking for, a dead spider corpse. I pick up the corpse, and silently open Ron's door. I drop the body to the floor, and pull out my wand. 'Engorgio.' I whisper. I watch as the spider grows to the size of a baby elephant. I let it grow a bit more, to where it is about the size of a queen sized bed. I smirk, and lift my wand up. I open the door a bit more to show everyone behind me. Ginny has to shove her fist in her mouth to block the sound, while Harry, Fred and George cast a silence charm on themselves. They were doubled over laughing, only silently. I close the door quietly, the knock on the door, and call out, 'Ron! Come on! The train leaves in an hour!' I slam the door shut, and wait for what I'm about to hear.

_'Oh SHIT! What the bloody hell?' _Ron screams. Fred, George, and Harry take off their silence charms, and scream with laughter. I open the door and double over laughter myself. Desperately trying to cover himself, Ron was trying to shove himself into the smallest corner in his bed. His face was red from screaming, and his limbs flailing from under the sheets. _'What the bloody hell were you thinking?' _ He screams at us.

I turn around to see the twins on their backs on the floor, both of them gripping their stomachs with their hands, laughing hysterically. Harry was leaning against the doorway, his head in his hands, laughing loudly as well. Ginny was standing next to me, trying to use my shoulder to prop herself up. Myself, I prop myself against the door, hoping it doesn't collapse.

Ron shoves his sheets down, pulls his wand out from his table and shrunk the spider with one roar of the counter spell. Once he gets his breathing under control again, he turned on us, with a look of pure fury etched on his face. 'What, _why would you do such a thing?' _he yells at us, which only fuels our laughter. _'Stop laughing.' _ He commands us.

That shuts us up, but the amused smiles are still very much present on our faces. 'Sorry Ron, come on, you're making us late.' Fred says, hitting his twin on the shoulder, gesturing for him to follow. The twins leave, leaving just me, Harry, Ginny, and Ron in the room.

'Aw come on Ron, it was just a joke.' Harry says, smiling at his best friend. 'Get your trunk and get dressed. We are leaving in fifteen minutes.' Harry says, leaving the room with Ginny. Ron flicks his wand, and everything is magically packed up. He flicks his wand again, and he is dressed in jeans and a maroon t-shirt.

'Ok I'm dressed and packed. Come on, let's go. Still not impressed with you.' He says, pointing to me, with a glare in his eye, but I know that glare, it's a glare of amusement.

I follow him out of the room, snickering the whole way out.

**A/N: Hah! A long chapter! I told you I would write one for you! Now, can anyone guess what is coming up? I want your feedback. What do you think is going to happen next? That means review my friends. Review! So for now, peace out suckas! [:**

**PS: Oh! Before I forget, does anyone else want to be a beta reader? I'm one down. :/ **


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot and my OC's. :)**

**A/N: Oh I am so sorry for not updating! I've been out at sea, having the suite life. (See what I did there?) And you people make me happy! I got more beta readers! Thank you thank you thank you! I won't talk long, but I'm just going to tell you, not much happens in this chapter, but I will make up for not updating in the next chapter. Can any of you guess what is in 24? I'll give you a hint. Second. **

**Now that I completely gave it away, onward with chapter 23!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 23

''Bye Ron! Don't forget to tell your brothers to keep out of trouble!' Mrs. Weasley shouts, waving the train goodbye. Ron waves back, then closes the window, and sits down next to me. 'She just needs to get it through her thick head that they will _never _get out of trouble. They are so far in; it's useless trying to get out.' Ron muses, causing Harry and Ginny to laugh loudly, but their laughter is cut short when we hear a sudden thud on the door. We turn and look, and a scowl crosses over my face.

'What the hell do they want?' Ginny asks, scowling at the people standing on the other side of the doorway. Staring back at us, were four pairs of steady eyes, and four mouths smirking back at us. Draco, Theo, Malik, and Arsenio are smirking at the four of us inside the room.

'Good question.' Harry says. He stands up and opens the door, letting Draco and his crew in. Draco comes in and smirks at the four of us.

'So, it's the normal crew, the weasel, the weaselette, the mudblood, and the boy who would nev-'he pauses, crinkling his nose. He pinches it shut, and then turns to my brothers next to him. 'Urgh, do you guys smell that?' he asks.

My brothers just smirk at Draco, and then turn on the Weasley's, their smirk growing even bigger, their eyes glowering in superiority. 'I know that smell, that's the smell of the weak...' Arsenio starts.

'Spineless…'

'Penniless…'

'Unsanitary…'

'Worthless…'

'Insignificant….'

'Unworthy…'

'Pathetic _weasels!' _Malik spats, glaring at Ron with the utmost distaste etched on his face, while Arsenio takes on glaring maliciously at Ginny. Draco takes up glaring at Ron and Theo goes to glare Ron, but both of their glares falter, when they try and hold back their snickering, which only infuriates me even further.

'_How dare you!' _I scream to them, standing up for my friends. '_You _are the spineless pathetic weasels! You don't _dare _say that to my friends, do you hear me Malfoy?' I scream at the top of my lungs, my wand pointed right in the pit of his throat, my eyes glistening dangerously at him, daring him to speak out against my friends again.

'H-hermione!' Draco squeaks, his eyes shows fear shining in his smoky gray eyes. His shaking hands point to my face, but my satisfaction distracts me. I switch victims, rounding on one of my brothers. My wand finds another victim, my brother Malik's throat.

'What about _you? _Do _you _have anything else to say about the Weasley's?' I yell at him, jabbing my wand further into his throat, feeling my glare get more intense.

**'HERMIONE! Listen to me! Your eyes!' **Malik yells through my mind, his own eyes glistening in fear as well. Theo abandons the cart to go find his other friends, but I don't notice. My attention is snapped in half. I go from heated hatred to utter terror. I drop my wand, and shove my brother out of the way, running straight for the bathroom.

I slam the door behind me, and shut my back to the door, panting. I scan my appearance, and immediately notice that instead of my normal brown eyes that my muggle-born me, but they were the swimming in gold. I slump to the floor, and hide my head in my hands, until I hear a knock on the door. I freeze, waiting to see if anyone states their name.

'Hermione?' someone whispers through the door. I recognize Draco's voice through the door. I consider not opening it for a moment.

**'Mione, just open the door, please?' **Malik asks gently.

**'Please open for us.' **Arsenio asks as well. I guess I said that to them rather than myself. I stand up, and open the door a tad, and peek outside the door, making sure it was them. They were standing outside the door, looking very anxious and worried. I open the door, and yank them inside, one by one. They all are in, and I promptly break down crying again.

'What's wrong?' Draco asks, kneeling down to wrap his arms around me.

'Get your hands off me!' I scream at him, shoving myself away from him. I reach for the doorknob, but Malik grabs me by the hand, pulling me backwards.

'Hermione, what's wrong?' He asks me. I struggle against his grip, but after Arsenio grabs my other hand, it's useless trying to get away. I lose it, and the tears begin to flow down my face.

'Leave me alone, all of you!' I weep, crying into my hands. Draco pulls me into his arms, even though he has to force me, so I can cry on his shoulder.

'What's wrong?' Draco asks again, stroking my cheek with his thumb.

'I lost control of my emotions!' I scream out, my tears coming out in wrecked sobs, my tears falling into my hands. 'I-I l-lost c-control o-of my em-emotions, a-and th-they al-almost f-found o-out!' I sob.

My brothers sat down beside us and started stroking my arms. 'It's fine Hermione, they didn't notice.' Arsenio tells me.

'How could they not? They were as brightly colored as the sun! A bright golden yellow!' I sigh again, getting my crying under control.

'It's our fault anyway Mione.' Arsenio says solemnly.

I get my emotions under control long enough to ask how.

'We shouldn't have provoked you like that. We should have known that you would have stuck up for your friends like that. And, I guess we went a bit far.' Malik says. 'I'm really sorry Mia.' He says.

'I'm sorry too. It was our entire fault.' Arsenio says. Draco gives my brothers a quick look, and my brothers promptly stand up. 'We will be outside, in Theo's cabin. We'll see you later Hermione.' Arsenio says. But before either one leaves, they both turn around. 'Love you Hermione.' Malik says, smiling down at me apologetically.

'Love you Hermione.' Arsenio says, before he opens the door and walks out with his brother right behind him.

Draco turns and looks at me, the tears lining his eyes. 'I'm so sorry Mione. I know I shouldn't have gone that far in front of you…' Draco says, stroking my cheek with his thumb, trying desperately to catch my eyes.

I find fascination in the fuzzy floor tile, but my obscured vision prevents that from happening. 'Draco… it's fine.' I whisper, struggling hard against looking at Draco, but his hand finds my chin and gently pulls me upward, forcing me to look at him.

'Hermione… please! I'm sorry! I promise I will never make fun of the Weasley's again! I-in fact, I will go apologize, right now!' He exclaims through his cry. He grabs my wrist, and begins pulling me out the door. But he stops only for a moment just to make sure that my eyes are not violet. I guess they are not, because me continues to pull me all the way down the hallway until we reach the cabin where Harry, Ron, and Ginny were sitting, engaged in some sort of conversation. Draco shoves the door aside, with me right behind him.

'Malfoy? What are you doing? Get your filthy hands off of her!' Ron yells angrily, standing up and angrily trying to pry Draco off my wrist, but Draco places his free hand on Ron's shoulder to sit him back down.

'Ron sit.' Draco commands him.

Ron opens his mouth to speak, but Harry slaps him over the shoulder, silencing him. Harry nods to Draco, letting him know that he can continue.

'Ron, Ginny, I'm sorry about everything that I said to you, everything I just said and everything I said in the past. You don't deserve that, none of you do. You aren't pathetic weasels, you are people. And I'm sorry I ever called you a blood traitor, because there is no such thing as a blood traitor, nor is there such things as mudblood. Anyone with one drop of magical blood is worthy of magic. I'm sorry.' Draco gushes out, apologizing. He was on the verge of tears, and he was gripping my hand very tightly.

Ron is giving Draco the strangest look of disapproval, disbelief, astonishment, and something else I couldn't spot. Ginny mirrored his facial expression, but Harry just had a look of faint approval on Draco's part.

Ron lost it. 'What the bloody _hell? _W-what the _hell _are you _doing _Malfoy!' He yells, ripping his wand out of his pocket, digging it deep into his throat. Draco immediately let go of my hand, and he was desperately trying to get Ron off of him, but Harry comes to his rescue.

'Ron! Get _off!' _Harry says calmly, shoving Ron off Draco, defending his new friend by pointing his wand out and points his wand at Ron.

'Harry? What the _bloody fricking hell is going on here?' _Ron scream, his hands going straight to his hair, tugging at his bright ginger locks. 'I'm outta here. Call me when everything makes sense.' Ron spats, storming out of the cabin, with his rather reluctant sister right behind me.

We all exchange quick looks with each other, exchange looks of shock, anxiety, and amusement. 'Well that could have gone better.' Harry muses, plopping back down on the seat, resting his feet against the opposite seat.

'Harry!' I exclaim with exasperation, sitting down on the opposite chair. Draco sits down next to me, trying to grab my hand again, but it's too busy being grabbed by my other hand. 'What was that? Now Ron thinks that the world turned parallelled! How are we going to fix this?' I say, crying out in confusion.

'Good question. I mean, I could just do what I did last time, bombard on him and make him listen. It worked last time.' Harry suggests.

'But last time, your best friend didn't stick up for your arch enemy who was desperately apologizing to you and your sister, while that same arch enemy was grasping the hand of your love!' Draco clarifies, raining on Harry's parade.

Harry's expression turns thoughtful. 'Oh, yeah. Well… shouldn't have said that stuff in front of Ron. It would be out of turn for Hermione not to defend Ron. I mean, Hermione and I aren't even supposed to be talking to you.' Harry says.

'Well, I guess I should be leaving. I will talk to you tomorrow. I will tell Malik and Arsenio what happened when they left.' Draco says, giving up trying to grab my hand, and getting up to leave. 'Follow my lead.' He whispers. Harry and I nod.

'Get out Malfoy, your ego is stuffing up the room, I can't breathe.' I scoff, yelling at Draco, shoving him out the door.

'Oh, my ego is stuffing up the cabin? It's more like your terrible mudblood breath! And get your filthy hands off me pathetic scum! How dare you touch me! My skin is contaminated!' he yells, shoving me off of him.

'Don't touch her Malfoy!' Harry screams, pulling his wand out, but Draco just laughs maliciously and smirks, strutting down the hallway. Harry slams the door shut, and plops down on the seat, and starts laughing. 'That was fun.' Harry laughs. _Too bad you don't know half of it Harry. _I think sadly.

About another two hours later, the train arrives at the Hogwarts station. Harry and I get up out of the cabin, and exit the train. 'I think we should go find Ron Harry.' I tell him.

He just nods. 'But right now, the only thing I can think of how much I want another apple.' Harry says, pushing ahead to the front of the crowd, with me right behind him.

'Really Harry? You had seven on the train! How could you want another one?' I laugh.

'Hermione, there is one thing you shouldn't ever do, question, my antics. Never, question, my, antics.' He says, putting deliberate space between all of his words. 'My apple addiction is one of those antics that you will learn to never question. I don't know when you will learn.' Harry scolds me, laughing.

I laugh too, hopping into the carriage with him. They pull off without anyone else joining Harry and me, so Harry brings up that subject again. 'Uh, Mione? Why did you run out after attacking Malik and Arsenio?' he asks.

I feel my heart stop again. 'Oh, well, they were just being infuriating. I couldn't stand them being like that to Ron. I guess I just overreacted.' I lie.

'Overreacted? Can I get that in writing? I want it to say I Hermione Granger, has in fact overreacted.' Harry jokes, as we pull into Hogwarts.

Harry and I get out of the carriage and begin walking towards the brightly lit castle in front of us. He jokes the whole way there, cracking jokes about apples. We reach the Great Hall, and sit down in our seats. Ron sulks in and forcefully sits down on his seat, fuming silently to himself.

'You ok mate?' Harry asks, immediately heading for the fruit bowl, grabbing the shiniest apple in the stack, and taking a large bite out of the side.

'Don't you _mate _me.' Ron spats, not even turning his head to talk to him.

Harry sighs loudly, then turns to me. 'Sweet Merlin, Mione. He's at it again. I swear he's got the mood swings of a hormonal girl.

Ron rounded on Harry in the blink of an eye. 'Mood swings of a _girl? _How _dare _you! I'm not the one switching sides, defending our _arch enemy! _You _defended __**Malfoy!**_ You heard what he called me, and you still defend him? Why?' Ron asks furiously, starting to make a scene.

'Well Ron, I did what I had to. I'm over the childhood grudges. You were about the beat the pulp out of him, and in fact, so was Mione, but Mione ran out. You shouldn't have let your anger get in the way. What would you have thought of yourself if you killed him? What would your family think? A good man doesn't kill unless harmed. You should know better than to let words get to you like that. If you don't believe it, then why should anyone else?' Harry asks, acting a lot wiser and older than normal, but then again, Harry isn't a normal teenage boy.

It was obvious to Ron too. He stood up, angered beyond words and actions, and stormed out of the Great Hall, without a final glance at either one of us.

'Bloody Hell…' Harry murmurs, sounding slightly amused, but more impressed than anything. 'I made Ron storm out of the Great Hall without _eating! _I must have really ticked him off.'

I laugh, impressed that Harry could lighten up the situation like that. 'Yeah, we'll talk to him after the feast. I think we should apolo-'

'Good Evening students!' Dumbledore announces over the Great Hall, silencing everyone in it. We all turn, turning our attention to our headmaster. 'Welcome back to school, and you all know what that means.' He says, waiting for our attention, seeing if anyone will answer. No one does, so he continues. 'The second task, begins at noon this time next week! So, champions, you have until then to figure out what that screeching egg is trying to tell you.' Dumbledore jokes, beaming a smile down at the students below him. 'Now, I bring the feast!' he exclaims, raising his hands above his head, gesturing for the elves to bring in the food.

But before the food appears on the table, Dumbledore adds onto his beginning of term speech. 'Oh, and for my champions, if you haven't figured out what that egg is saying, run it over in the bath. It should help, clear your mind. Now, let the feast begin!'

A full hour later, the Great Hall is empty, and everyone is heading down to the common room. I'm walking down the crowded hallway next to Harry, who smuggled a good dozen apples in his pocket, as he currently chows down on one right now. 'I swear, whoever discovered apples is my most favorite person on this planet.' Harry muses.

'He's dead Harry.' I correct him, smiling at him.

'Animi.' Harry says to the fat lady, then turns to me. 'My favorite person that ever lived on this planet.' He corrects himself, smirking at me.

Before I can think of anything smart to say back to him, our eyes are met with a very steamed Ron, venting silently on the couch, in front of the fire, glaring at it with equal rage in his eyes. Harry and I exchange quick looks with each other, before we go and stand in front of Ron.

'Hey Ron.' I say tentatively. He looks up at me, nods, then shifts his gaze back at the floor by his feet. 'Ron, we need to talk to you.' I try again, with a bit more confidence in my voice.

Yet still he doesn't answer. 'Ron! Listen to me.' Harry says sternly.

Ron looks up with disinterest. 'What do you want Harry?' he asks numbly.

'I want to know what the hell is wrong with you! Why do you care that I defended Malfoy? I probably protected you from doing something that you would regret! What would you think of yourself if you killed him in that train car?' Harry asks him.

'I would think of myself as a hero! Nobody likes him!' Ron yells, standing up furiously, his furious gaze meets Harry's calm one.

'I do, Ron. And I could name many others who do as well. If you took half the chance to actually get to know him, you wouldn't think he was half bad either. He's fine. You are the one that is being ignorant, and stupid.' Harry says, choosing his words wisely.

Ron glares at Harry with the utmost discontent. But I can tell that he's only mad that harry upstaged him, and made him look like a fool. 'Shut your mouth _Potter! _You don't have the right to tell me what to do, or who to like! I can't recall the last time YOU would want to protect Malfoy! You would have reacted the same way if I did it!' Ron yells, getting louder and madder with each passing word.

'No, I wouldn't have Ron. I have decided to give everyone an equal chance. Just because you and your family have a grudge towards the Malfoy's doesn't mean everyone else does.' Harry says, keeping his temper like a saint. He must have got it from his mother because if it were me, I would have pulled my wand out and hexed him to the ceiling ages ago. 'Would it kill you to at least _try _and be descent to him, or anyone else in Slytherin?' Harry asks.

'Yes, it would! And it should kill you too!' Ron screams, thrashing his hands around, his face matching his flaming ginger hair. 'I can't believe you! Or you Hermione!' he screams, rounding on me, pointing his finger at my face.

'Me? What have I done?' I ask, shocked, feeling my own temper begin to rise. 'I haven't done anything wrong Ron.' I say, trying to keep my ever rising temper at bay.

'Are _you _friends with Malfoy too?' He asks, his voice is unusually calm sounding, especially for this conversation. 'I want nothing but the truth.' He adds, eying me.

_Well, if you want nothing but the truth, then yes, yes I am, but if you want me to lie and make you feel better, then no, no I'm not. _'You want the whole truth Ron?' I ask him.

'Isn't that what I just said?' he says, adding emphasis on the word just. His suspicion in his eye grew stronger and stronger. 'I want the **truth **Hermione!' He says, his voice rising with every word. He stalks towards me, getting about five centimeters from my face.

'Why don't you just ask him?' I ask him smartly, smirking at him. He stares down dumbfounded at me.

'Mione… were you just being sarcastic? And why in Merlin's name would I do that?' Ron asks, completely forgetting to sound angry and uninterested.

_Act like you normally would Hermione! _'No, I was joking… sorry Ron. It's been a long day. In fact, I'm going to bed. Goodnight Ron, Harry.' I say, promptly walking away from my bickering friends, and up to the staircase. 'Harry, remember that the second task begins soon. We need to find out what that egg is screeching about.' I say, turning at the base of the staircase to face him.

'Does Malik know? Maybe he can help us.' Harry asks, ignoring Ron's angry looks.

'Maybe, we'll ask him tomorrow. I recommend going to bed. Goodnight.' I say once more, heading up the staircase, and into my dorm.

'Hey Mione, going to bed?' Ginny asks, sitting on her bed reading a fashion magazine with Pavarti and Lavender. They are all dressed in their pajamas, and sitting in a circle, braiding each other's hair.

'Yeah, I was going to help Harry figure out what his clue is trying to tell him.' I answer, getting dressed in my own pajamas, and climbing into bed.

'Oh, good luck. The last time I heard that thing, it was screaming bloody murder. I wouldn't want to be the one helping him, no matter how much I like Harry.' Ginny says honestly.

This stumped me. 'But Ginny, I thought you liked Arsenio.' I say, looking at her, noticing for the first time that her face looked tear stained.

Her face contorted, and she burst into tears again. Lavender and Pavarti immediately began to comfort her, while shooting me dirty looks.

'Way to go Mione! We just calmed her down!' Pavarti scowls at me.

I try and rethink about what happened, besides the scene in the train cabin, but besides that, I can't remember anything else. 'Why? What happened to her?' I ask them.

'Well, you know what happened in the cabin? Those mean but gorgeous twins were in your cabin, and when Ron and Ginny left, they ran into the twins again. They threw all sorts of insults at them again.' Lavender fills me in.

'Really? Like what?' I ask curiously.

'Oh, only things like filthy unworthy pesent, that I'm unworthy of magical blood, I'm a blood traitor, I'm uglier than the bottom of his shoe, I'm not worth the bottom of his shoe, and I come from a family of weasels, unworthy of hell itself!' Ginny screams at me.

'Ok! Sorry I asked. Ginny, I'm sorry that my broth- Arsenio did that to you.' I apologize, and catching my mistake before it was too late. Thankfully enough, Lavender and Pavarti were too busy comforting a very depressed looking Ginny to notice.

**'Geez Arsenio, Malik, why did you do that?' **I ask them, sounding very disappointed.

**'Remind me, what did we do again?' **Malik asks, sounding clueless.

**'You insulted Ginny and Ron, well, I really don't care about Ron's emotions at the time, but you insulted Ginny. Why?' **I ask them.

**'Hello! We **_**have **_**to do that! We can't act nice around them in public, and, well, why do you ask?' **Arsenio asks, sounding curious.

**'Oh, well, Arsenio, she really liked you.' **I confess to them. I feel a rush of surprise come from the both of them.

**'Really? She does? And which one of us?' **Arsenio asks again, still sounding curious.

**'Arsenio.' **I answer them.

**'Aww, does wittle Arsenio have a wittle admirer?' **Malik slurs. I can pretty much picture Malik's smirk across his lean face.

**'What? But, but, I like-' **He cuts himself off abruptly. I can feel his embarrassment flood through my mind.

**'Like? Like who? You like someone? Who?' **Malik asks, poking fun at Arsenio. I can feel his smirk growing larger and larger.

**'No one! I like no one! Why? Is it obvious?' **Arsenio rambles, his embarrassment growing even further.

**'It's obvious, because you almost told us who. Now, spill older brother. I will tell you who I like, and I'm pretty sure Malik will do the same.' **I say, trying to pry the information out of my brother. Malik silently agrees.

**'Fine! I like Astoria ok!' **Arsenio says, his embarrassment reaches an all-time high.

**'Really? You like Astoria? Well, I like Rosalia. She was my Yule ball date. What about you Mione? Who do you like Mia? Can I guess? Is it Draco?' **Malik asks, taking a very good guess.

**'Is there a need to confirm it? You guess right.' **I muse, feeling myself blush. **'And can we hang out tomorrow? We have to help Harry figure out the clue.' **I ask them.

**'Why can't you just tell him?' **Arsenio asks.

**'I just want to seem real. So, can you? Around 10:30?' **I ask them.

**'Sure! We'll be there. See you tomorrow?' **Malik asks, confirming.

**'Yep! See you tomorrow!' **I say, pulling out, and setting my head down on my pillow, letting sleep immediately over take me.

I wake up to an empty dorm, with no wailing Ginny, and no Pavarti or Lavender. I silently get dressed, and head downstairs to the Great Hall, where I hope to find Harry.

I find him sitting in his normal seat, munching on his apple. I walk over to him, grab a pear, and sit next to him. 'Hey Harry.' I greet him, taking a bite out of my pear.

'Hey Mione.' He greets me. 'Are we still going to go talk to the twins later?' he asks me.

'Yeah, I think so. By the lake as normal. Maybe around 10:30?' I ask him.

He checks his watch, and raises his eyebrow. 'Oh, well, it's almost 10:30, it's actually 10:15. Should we head off now?' he asks me.

'Sure, let's go. Grab another apple before we leave.' I tell him, laughing at him. He smirks at me, and grabs two more apples, and throwing a banana at me. 'Here, take this.'

'Toss me another apple will you?' I ask him. He picks up the reddest apple on the stack and tosses it to me. I catch it with my free hand, and we walk out the Great Hall door, and we head down to the lake, where I planned to meet the twins and Draco.

'Harry? What do you think the egg means?' I ask him, acting in character.

'Well, it talked about taking something I'll sorely miss. That's all I can guess.' He tells me.

'Well, we'll run it over with the Malik and Arsenio when we get there.' I say. The rest of the walk was silent; it was just us eating our fruits that we took with us.

We reach the willow tree near the lake, and find Malik and Arsenio sitting there, eating their own apples. 'Sup Harry? Come to figure out the egg?' Malik asks, smiling up at his new friend.

'Yeah, do you know what its saying?' Harry asks, sitting down on the morning grass next to Malik, while I sit down on the rock right next to the lake, under the willow tree.

'Well, I think all its saying is, that they are going to take someone important to us, and we only have an hour to do so.' Malik says. 'My brother and I have been thinking about it for a long time.' He adds, noticing Harry's raised eyebrow.

'Where do you think it is?' Harry asks again.

This time, I speak up. 'Well, the clue said that they cannot sing above the ground, so I'm thinking that the creatures singing the clue are mer-people. So the second task probably has something to do with this lake.' I say, dipping my fingers in the lake and fingering the water.

'Awesome! I'm an awesome swimmer! I have been since I was four!' Malik exclaims, pumping his fist in the air. 'This is going to be easy!'

'Oh sure, but who are they going to take? Even if it is a who, would the teachers risk students' lives for this tournament?' I ask, taking time to think about it. Would they take someone and send them to the bottom of a lake? That's terrible…

'People have died in this tournament before Mione. This is no joke, and it is very serious.' Harry says seriously, eyeing me with the same seriousness.

'I know that Harry! Don't give me that tone. I know how serious this tournament is. But I would still like to know who or what they are going to take.' I say, giving him my shake or disapproval. I end up breaking the tension by making my twin brothers laugh. Harry joins in the laughter, and I end up joining last.

'Oh well, I just want to get to get this dumb tournament over with. The more and more I'm in this, the more and more I want to get out of it. I can't believe that headmaster put me in this.' Malik says honestly.

'I want to be out of it just ask much as you do Malik.' Harry says, smirking. Arsenio smirks as well, shoving his brother aside.

We continue to crack jokes at each other for a good two of three hours, just sitting there talking and joking at each other. But, after about halfway through the third hour, we hear someone's footsteps walk up behind us. I turn around and see Dumbledore standing behind us, looking very pleased. 'Hello Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger, Mr. Snapes, how are you this afternoon?' he asks with a twinkle in his eye.

'Fine Professor Dumbledore, what about you?' Malik asks politely.

'Fine thank you. I actually just need to see you three in my office.' He answers, pointing to me and my twin brothers.

'Us, sir?' Arsenio asks, gesturing to himself.

'Yes, Mr. Snape. There are people that need to speak to you three individually. Please come with me.' Dumbledore says, gesturing to the three of us. 'Sorry Mr. Potter, but you must find someone else to talk with.

'Alright sir. Bye guys. I'll find you later, I suppose.' Harry says, getting up and walking away, leaving me with my brothers alone with Dumbledore.

**'Does he know?' **Arsenio asks me. I can see where he's coming from. I would like to know if Dumbledore knows that we are all related.

**'Should I ask?' **I ask them. I can feel the inward battle between us all, and it was between telling Dumbledore and sticking with our normal act of acting like we hate each other.

**'I'm sure that Father has told him before… let's just tell him. You can do this Mione.' **Malik encourages me.

'Um, sir?' I begin, pulling out of my conversation with my brothers to face my headmaster, uncertainty etched all over my face and voice.

'Yes Hermione?' he prompts me to continue, that same twinkle in his eye.

'Do… you do know that we are… related… right?' I stutter, turning away just in case he didn't know that I was related to the twin boys standing across from me.

His face breaks into a smile, and he starts laughing. 'Yes, Hermione, I am aware that you are Professor Snape's youngest daughter, and related to these two young men right here.' He says, gesturing to my brothers, whose faces break into relief. 'And your mentors are here. They are in my office. Come on.' He says, gesturing for us to follow. I walk next to my brothers and we walk together down the hallway, right behind my headmaster.

**'That couldn't have gone any better.' **Malik says, sounding relieved.

**'And that could have gone a lot worse too.' **Arsenio jokes, smirking next to me. I hear Malik snicker on the other side of me, I even feel own face morph into a smile.

**'At least he understood. He's the first person I've told, and it feels weird.' **I confess.

**'Come to think of it, I think it's the first person we've told too. And come to think of it, it does feel really weird telling anybody. I guess we actually might have to be doing that a lot more. I really feel guilty about leaving Harry out of this. He's probably going to be really upset with all three of us for not telling him. He does trust us. You more than with one of us.' **Malik says, an inch of guilt inching through his voice.

** 'Yeah… I guess we should tell him. But no time seems right. But you are right.' **I say, pulling out. We walk up Dumbledore spiral staircase and up to his office, where I find Ivory, Marc, and Brock sitting in his office. Brock was sitting on Dumbledore's desk, while Ivory and Marc were sitting in the two chairs positioned in front of the desk. Dumbledore clears his throat rather loudly, announcing that we are here. Brock jumps off the desk and stands up straight, brushing the dust off his shirt.

'Sorry Sir, I didn't mean to...' Brock trails off, but Dumbledore silences him with the raise of his hand.

'No need to apologize Brock. After all, you all need to get to work.' Dumbledore says, stepping aside, letting our masters come and greet us.

'Sup Arsenio! Let's go, I've got this wicked combo of two upper cuts and a jab. Let's go.' Brock says excitedly, pulling Arsenio out the door.

**'Have fun Arsenio!' **I say to him, snickering at him.

Marc walks up to my brother next. 'Come Malik, the school library is stuffed with books on healing. I think we might be expecting your other master to show up today. Let's go.' Marc says seriously. Marc walks out the door, with Malik right behind him.

'I guess that just leaves us. Come on Hermione, I've got some awesome water bending techniques I want to show you. I think you'll like this. Come on.' She says, tugging me with her.

'So, what kind of water bending are you going to show me today?' I ask her.

'Well, we are not going to do this today, but there is something I want to show you and tell you about. It's a really tough thing to master, but with your skill, I think you might be able to get it.' She smiles. We walk outside onto the grounds, and walk over to the lake.

Mouth open, I'm about to ask her something, but I hear someone walk over to Ivory and I. 'Hey! Mione!'

I turn around and see Draco running up to me, with a radiant smile on his face. I smile back to him.

'Hey, Draco. What's up?' I ask him, but then I remember that I'm supposed to be training right now. 'Oh, wait, sorry Draco. I'm supposed to be, training.' I say, turning away.

'Oh, no, it's fine. I could actually use Mr. Malfoy's help. Would you help?' Ivory asks, smirking at Draco.

'Oh, sure. What do you need help with?' he asks, stepping up beside me, with that same goofy smile on his face.

'I just need you to stand there.' Ivory says, pointing a spot beside the lake. Draco walks over there.

'Here?' Draco asks to confirm. Ivory nods.

'Yes, now, I need you to watch this. Hermione, ready?' Ivory asks me, turning to me. I nod, excited for what she is about to show me. Ivory smirks at me, then turns to Draco. She raises her hands up, and opens her eyes, staring straight at Draco. 'I'm sorry.' Ivory says. Before I have to ask why, she strains her hands, and shuts her eyes tightly. Her hands are pointed straight at Draco. And before my eyes, Draco doubles over, screaming in pain. His hands fly straight to his stomach. His eyes are tightly shut, with tears streaming down his face. Ivory's hands are tightening, and they are moving ever so slightly to the right.

'Stop! Ivory please!' I beg desperately. I run over to Draco and wrap my arm around his body. 'Draco? Draco! Say something!' I say, trying to catch his eye. I round on Ivory, glaring at her. 'Stop it! Can't you tell that he's in pain? Open your eyes at look at me!' I scream at her, while still trying to comfort Draco.

Ivory opens her eyes and drops her hands to her sides. She drops to her knees and begins to cry. Draco sags in my hands and starts to hyperventilate. 'Draco! Draco say something!' I cry, trying to capture his attention, but the tears pouring down my face made it hard to see Draco.

'H-her…mione…' he moans.

'Shh… shh… it's ok Draco. Just sit down.' I say, gently sitting him down on the grass. I gently kiss him on the cheek and storm over to Ivory. '_What the __hell __was that? How __dare __you do that to him? What were you thinking?' _I scream at her, feeling the power surge through my veins.

'Mione, I'm so sorry…' she apologizes, but I don't hear her feeble excuse.

'_Shut your mouth! Who do you think you are? I'm supposed to be learning off of you? I can't believe you would do that!' _I scream at her. I begin to focus on every single bead of sweat on my face, and the water in the lake. I rise above the ground, and command the water to obey me. It rises up, and I start to bend it around my body, freezing it till each little droplet was a razor sharp ice shards. I rip my hands away from side and shoot them out in front of me, sending the ice shards straight for Ivory, as I watch the confidence I saw before drown in horror, exactly what I wanted to see.

_Fear? Horror? Hermione! Stop! _my inner conscious echoes in my mind. _This isn't you! Stop before you hurt someone! _

The ice shards fall limply to the ground around Ivory's body. I fall back to my knees, letting my knees grace the wet grass below me. I feel something warm wrap around my body, trying to comfort me. Draco's worried face shadows over me, scanning over me to make sure I'm ok.

'Draco move.' I strain out, gently pushing him aside, tripping over to my water bending master, with the terror still very real on her face. I fall down to my knees and face my master. 'Ivory? Ivory? Can you hear me? Please say something…' I trail off, feeling more tears pour down my face.

'It's fine… its j-just emotional t-training. B-but I d-didn't m-mean for I-it to g-go that far.' Ivory says, using my arm to stand up. Once she gathers herself up, she smiles weakly. 'I'll give you credit though Mione, that was an excellent form of water bending, freezing it and spearing at your target.' She jokes.

'I'm so sorr-'

'There is no need to apologize Mione. I understand why you flipped out. And, what I did, it isn't something to take lightly.' Ivory says, catching Draco and my attention.

'What _did _you do to me? But, I all I remember is that my arms and legs wouldn't listen to my brain, and that… it was like each individual cell was being ripped apart each in a separate direction.'

Ivory's smile falters. 'Oh… that… there are more important things than what I di-'

'Tell me Ivory. I do have the right to know.' I say in a slightly commanding tone.

'I was blood bending. I was bending the water inside his body, commanding it to do what I tell it to.' Ivory says, her tone turning serious. 'You can do that with anything, including animals. You can even do things like bend ice, like what you did, plant bending, and weather bending. I will teach all you all of these later. But, I need you to master the tai chi moves I taught you. Then, once you master those, weather bending, which is the hardest, will come naturally to you.' Ivory says, developing an excited look on her face.

'Weather bending? What… what is this? Hermione? What's going on?' Draco asks me, looking both stunned and surprised at the same time.

'Oh, you know how me and my brothers are… connected right?' I ask him, remembering that my brothers haven't told anybody that we all have the powers of the super natural triplets.

**'Malik, Arsenio, should I tell Draco about our powers?' **I ask them.

** 'Um, well, just make sure that he doesn't tell anybody. If anyone is to know, we have to be the ones to tell them. So, yes. And thanks Hermione, you just made me fall out of midair, right in the middle of my triple combo.' **Arsenio says, pulling out of the conversation.

** 'Yeah, you can tell him. I've got to go too, I have to get through the rest of these books before the hour is up.' **Malik says, pulling out right after his brother.

'Yeah, what about it? You guys are just closer than normal.' Draco says, eyeing for me to continue.

'Well, we are the super natural triplets. We are connected in a way beyond normal. We are all gifted with powers. I have the power to control earth's natural elements, Malik has the power to heal, and Arsenio has the power of fighting.' I answer him.

His eyes sparkle with more questions, but his eyes turn to the setting sun. 'Wow, it's sunset. Should we head inside? I've still got a ton more question to ask you.' Draco asks, looking excited.

'Yes, we will pick up again tomorrow, and if it's cloudy enough, I will show you the basics of weather bending. Your tai chi is getting close to perfect. I think you are close enough to start weather bending.' Ivory compliments me.

We begin to walk towards the castle, with my ears being flooded with questions from a very eager looking Draco at my side.

'So are you all training with masters? And what about each power? Do they all do something different? And what about-…?'

**A/N: Have you all guessed what is in the next chapter? Well you won't have to wait long, summer is here, and I can write! (: I might have it up later this week, but… it's an intense chapter, so I have to make sure I write it well. [: Peace out for now, Prongs is out!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot and my OC's! Everything else belongs to JK Rowling!**

**A/N: Mhm… That's right! Summer is doing good things for you people. Two chapters in less than two weeks! What lucky ducks you are! Now before I start talking too much, let's just commence with chapter 24!**

**ONWARD WITH CHAPTER 24! :] (- Trademark smiley face!)**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 24

The morning sun glistened through stained glass in my dorm, but this morning sun wasn't like the others. This morning, the weak sunlight barely shines through the dirty window. This morning, the light rain gently falls against the window, making a light pattering noise against the glass. This morning, is the morning of the second task. Fantastic.

I get out of bed and get dressed in silence. I headed down the stairs and noticed that no one there either, so I walk out of the common room and down the deserted hallway and down to the great hall, which is where I find most of the students, crammed onto the tables in the hall, shoving food down their faces. I scan the Gryffindor table for Harry, and find him sitting in his normal chair, and munching on his apples. Go figure.

I walk up to him, and sit down in my seat. 'Hey Harry.' I say in a monotone, while picking up an apple and taking a big, moody bite out of it.

'Morning Mione.' He says, taking note of my monotone voice. 'Hey, what's wrong?' he asks, sitting up, dropping his elbows to his knees, his gaze looking deep into mine.

'Nothing, it's nothing Harry. What about you? You aren't nervous or freaking out?' I ask him, remembering that he too is going to be competing in the second task as well.

'Eh. Freaking out, that's not really my thing. I'm more of the avoiding-death-by-winging-it sort of guy. I can do this. Have you talked to Malik lately? Do you know how he feels?' Harry asks in a more joking, laid back tone.

'I'm sure he's fine Harry. I mean, he's a lot like you.' I say, acting on impulse. 'I'll ask him though.' I say, forgetting to say something different.

**'Malik? Arsenio? You guys there?' **I ask them, wondering if they are open-minded.

**'I'm here, but I'm not sure about Malik. He's not here.' **Arsenio answers me. **'Why?' **

** 'I wanted to ask if he's ok. I mean, today is the day of the second task. I haven't heard anything from him today.' **I say, sounding a bit more concerned.

**'I haven't seen him today either. I guess that our dumb headmaster made him get up early to train or whatever. I'll have to talk to you later. I can hear my dumb headmaster calling me now. See ya Mione.' **Arsenio says, pulling out.

'Arsenio hasn't seen him either; he says that Malik was stuck with his headmaster.' I answer, and then abruptly pause, realizing my fatal mistake.

'You've talked to Arsenio today?' Harry asks curiously, not realizing that he saved me.

'O-oh, I, I talked t-to him in t-the hallway.' I stutter, ecstatic that he saved me from making up a lie that would probably sound terrible and totally unbelievable.

'Gotcha. So, wait, do you know what time the second task begins?' Harry asks me.

I'm about to answer, but someone beat to me to it. I see Dumbledore grace the podium and stand up to face the crowded hall. He raises hand to silence us, and the hall falls silent. Every student turns their head to face their headmaster. 'Students.' He greets us, smiling. 'The second task will begin at noon. For the champions, you have till then to do any last minute preparations. Good luck.' He says, and with one last parting smile, he turns away from the student body, and walks away.

'Mione, what time is it?' Harry asks me, adding a sudden urgency in his tone.

'I'm not the one that wears a watch all the time genius.' I say smartly, smirking at him.

'Oh…. Right…' he trails of, the embarrassment radiating off of him. He pulls his sleeve up and checks his watch. 'It's… 10:29. Can you come down to the library and help me do some last minute preparations?' He asks me.

'Sure Harry. We better go now so we have enough time. Grab apples now, you aren't coming back to get more later.' I add, watching with amusement as he grabs about five or six apples and shoves them in the giant pockets on either side of his robe. 'Hey, um, Harry? Are we going to apologize to Ron soon? I feel really bad about what happened.' I say, turning to him.

'Apologize? Why would we do that?' he asks me without turning, and while taking a giant bite out of one of his shiny red delicious apples.

'Because we made him upset….? Because you need all the support you can get…? Because he's your best mate…? Shall I continue….?' I list reasons for him, checking his facial expression for any sign of caving. Normally when I ask something of Harry, he rises to the occasion, but not this time.

'Why should we apologize? We did nothing wrong. It should be him begging at our shoes.' Harry scoffs off my idea, as we round the corner to the library.

'Well first off Harry, imagine if Ron stuck up for Draco before you were friends with him? Wouldn't you be confused and taken aback too? Just think about how Ron feels. I mean, you stuck up for the guy that insulted Ron and his sister to his face.' I say slowly, picking my words wisely. I wait a moment for the words to sink in before I continue. 'And Harry, apologizing doesn't mean that you are wrong and the other person is right. It just means that you value that person's friendship over your own pride and ego.'

Eyes widened, Harry looks at me, his face void of all emotion except for shock and understanding. Finally, after several moments of thinking about it, he speaks up. 'Hermione, if you do nothing else with your life, be a life coach.' Harry says, smiling at me.

Baffled, I open my mouth to speak. 'Harry! You are completely missing the point! My point was-'

'I got your point Mione. We'll apologize to him later, after the second task? We've got work to do, me more than you. Trying to mentally prepare yourself for something like this isn't as easy as you would think.'

'I know Harry! Now come on, let's go. The longer we have to prepare, the better.' I say, walking up to a random row of books and scanning the spine of them all. Harry walks up to me and helps me scan, and for the next hour, we find absolutely nothing.

'Argh! This is so frustrating! You are going into this knowing absolutely _nothing!' _I scream at myself, frustrated. Grabbing two handfuls of hair, I frantically try and find something that can help Harry, but I am disrupted by someone walking up behind me.

'Miss. Granger?'

'What?' I scream, rounding on the person behind me, but it isn't what I expected. Looking highly amused at me was my one and only headmaster Professor Dumbledore. 'Oh! Professor Dumbledore! I'm so sorry! I was just trying to help Harry!' I say, pointing to Harry, who was doubled over laughing, my guess at me.

Raising his hand, he silences me, noting that I was about to go on a rant again. 'There is no need to apologize Miss. Granger. I just need you to come with me.' He says, turning to head out of library. 'No, you are not in trouble; I just need your assistance with something.' He adds on, knowing all too well that the first question that going to shoot out of my mouth was going to be _am I in trouble? _

'Um, not to be disrespectful Sir, but now? I have to help Harry.' I plead, hoping I could help my best friend in some way.

'I'm sorry, Miss. Granger, but your assistance is needed now. Come.' He orders lightly, walking out of the library.

'I'm sorry Harry…' I apologize quietly, before running after Dumbledore, just barely catching his response, have fun.

Sprinting down the hallway, I catch up to my headmaster. 'Sir? Can I ask you something?'

'You want to know what you are going to help me with, am I wrong?' Dumbledore smiles, giving me that knowing smile. I swear this old wise man can read minds. 'Well, in a way, yes you are.'

I don't ask any more questions. I just walk a couple of steps behind him all the way to his office. Entering his office, I walk in and stand in the middle of the round office.

**'Mione? What are you doing in here?' **I hear Arsenio ask me suddenly.

** 'What? What are you talking about?' **I ask him back. With him not answering, I get a vibe that he's trying to tell me to turn around. Behind me, my tall skinny brother stands with his back against the wall and his arms crossed. Standing next to him was a very ticked off looking Ron with his own arms folded angrily over his chest. Next to Ron were two very uneasy looking girls, Cho Chang, and a very pretty younger looking girl, wearing a Beauxbatons uniform.

'Um, Sir? If you don't mind me asking, but, what are we here for?' I ask, turning away from my brother to turn to my headmaster.

'I'm afraid I can't tell you. I just need you all to stand in a line.' Dumbledore says. Arsenio walks up beside me, taking my right side. Ron takes his right. Cho walks up to my left, with the young girl right next to her. 'Professor Snape, take it away.' Dumbledore says, stepping aside to make room for my father.

He hands us all a glass full of a vial green liquid. The terrible aroma of the liquid smelled of a dead troll corpse that has been sitting out in the sun for over twenty four hours. And here I am, thinking that a normal troll smells terrible. Staring down at it, the green liquid spurts out bubbles, popping in my face, splattering that liquid all over my face. 'Drink it.' He orders us, drawling out in his bored tone, eyeing my brother and me.

But his expression was polar opposite from his tone. I bring the vial up to my mouth and poured it down my throat, and winced as it stung my throat. The last thing I saw was Father's desperate eyes was him telling me only one thing, I'm sorry, before darkness clouded my vision, and I fell under.

**MALIK'S POV**

'Harder Martin! Don't you want to win?' Karkaroff screams at me.

'My name is _Malik!' _I say, getting immensely frustrated with my dumb headmaster. I mean, I've only been his student for the past four years, ending every year at the top of my class too, alongside my brother, but of course, he isn't here. 'You know what, screw this. The second task is in thirty minutes, and if you don't mind, I'm going to go find my brother.' I say, throwing my towel to the floor, and running back up to the castle before that pathetic excuse of a headmaster can stop me.

**'Arsenio? You there?' **I ask, just wanting to hear my brother's voice, but nothing answers, just silence. **'Arsenio? Can you hear me?' **I try again, pleading with my brother, but once again, the absence of sound greets me.

** 'What about you Mione? Are you there?' **I try my sister, wanting to hear her voice just as much as my brother's voice, but once again, nothing answers me, just the echo of my own voice bouncing around inside my lonely mind. **'Where are you?' **I ask into nothing, my voice sounding lonelier than ever.

I sulk down the hallway, with my head hanging loosely on my neck, just desperate for someone to talk to right now. I walk down to my room, and quickly shed my morning clothes and change into my champion robe. They told us to wear some kind of swimsuit under it, so I just throw on a pair of loose swimsuit trunks, and throw my robe on over it, then leave to head to the champions tent.

The champions' tent wasn't as comfortable as the last time. It still had the beds in there, just for us to sit on, and it had a magically powered fan on the ceiling.

'Malik!' I hear someone say my name. I turn my head, and see Harry standing next to me. 'Have you seen Mione? Or Arsenio?' he asks me, beating me to my own question.

'No, actually, I haven't. 'I answer honestly.

'That bites…' Harry trails off, as the other champions walk into the tent. Krum strides in as normal, as if the whole world is under his pinky finger. Fleur and Cedric walk in together, engrossed in conversation.

Barty Crouch walks over to the five champions. 'Alright, let's get this party started. It's going to be a walk in the park. I hope you all figured out a way to stay underwater for an hour. I will announce you all individually. Good luck!' he says curtly. My face drops from _it's going to be a walk in the park _to _I hope you all figured out how to stay under water for an hour. _I don't know what park he's talking about, but his park must be infested with death eaters, and trolls, mer-people.

Harry's expression mirrors my own. 'Underwater? But, I never figured out how!' he cries desperately.

'Neither did I! My brother is supposed to help me!' I exclaim back, desperately trying to get in contact with my siblings. **'Where are you?' **I ask hopelessly.

'Malik, what are we going do?' Harry asks, sounding just as hopeless and clueless as me.

As if the heavens are trying to help us, a rather nerdy looking kid burst into the tent, in search of Harry. 'Harry, Harry! I need to show you something.' He says.

'What is it Neville?' Harry asks sounding a bit annoyed with the kid that was requesting him.

'I have something that I think will help you.' The kid named Neville says. Interested, both Harry and I nod at him, letting him continue. He opens his hand to reveal the grossest looking weed I've ever seen. It's soggy sluggish green color is making the bile rise in my throat, making me gag. The smell radiating off of it smelled like a dead centaur that's been baking in the sun for over twenty four hours.

'Umm… Neville, if you don't mind by me asking, but, what the hell died in your hand?' Harry asks, eyeing the squishy weed with astonishment.

'It's gillyweed!' Neville exclaims excitedly, looking at us with the same intensity.

Harry and I exchange looks of disbelief and astonishment. But before we get the chance to ask what the hell that gross looking weed does, Mr. Crouch begins to call us out. 'Viktor Krum!' he pauses in between everyone's name. 'Fleur Delacour!' 'Cedric Diggory!' 'Harry Potter!' I exchange one desperate look at Harry, before he sheds his cloak and then he leaves.

'And last but most certainly not last, Malik Snape!' he announces, making my heart sink into the floor beneath me. There will be forever more, a fossil of my confidence, strength, pride, and skill underground. It's something that existed, but died when something killed it. Fantastic.

I shed my cloak, with that dorky kid Neville right behind me, and walk outside of the tent. The bright blinding light hit my eyes, blinding me. I cower backwards, shielding my eyes with my hands. I go and walk over next to Harry. Neville walks over to the both of us and hands us each a glob of that terrible weedy sludge. 'What am I supposed to do with this crap anyway?' I ask him, trying not to vomit.

'Eat it, and quick!' Neville says to us, ushering us, shoving our hands towards our mouths.

'Eat it?' I exclaim, baffled. My expression mirrors Harry's, astonishment, and a look of pure shock. 'Do you _want _me to die? There is no way I'm eating this!' I yell at him, trying to throw it out of my hand, but Neville won't let me.

'Champions! Are you ready?' Mr. Crouch booms over the stadium of screaming students. Neville shoves the weed down my throat, and blocking my mouth, forcing me to swallow the vile weed down my throat, causing me to gag.

'Swallow it!' Neville begs us. I force myself to swallow the disgusting food. Immediately, whatever the hell he made me swallow, made my whole body begins to cringe, and my throat begins to swell.

'N-nev-vil-le.' I sputter, my hands fly to my throat, desperately clawing at it, trying to form words in time, but I hear the bell ring out. 'Now remember, it only lasts for an hour!' Neville says, while he pushes both Harry and I into the water. Flailing around wildly, I sloppily dive into the lake, and I can feel my body sinking lower and lower into the freezing cold, murky water.

I take one last desperate look at Harry, who is sinking at the same rate I am. I take a deep breath, and desperately look around for something that would save me, but I just realized that the thing that would save me, literally just flew through my throat. Carefully, my hands reach for my throat, and the moment they find it, they find little flaps of skin, swaying in the tide of the water. Gills. I look down, expecting to see my feet, but once again, I'm not met with what I expected. Fins. My hands look exactly the same, flaps of skin connecting all of my fingers together.

I turn to Harry, with the most excited look on my face, who mirrored my own expression. He nods slowly to me, smirking. I know what he wants. I nod back to him, and we quickly swim upward, flying upward out of the water. I flip backwards, and he flips forward, giving the crowd a quick show before we dive off in search for whatever the hell we have to find. Head first; we dive back into the murky lake water. I turn to him, and I can tell just by the look in his eyes that we are going to do this together, especially since all the other champions are long gone.

**'Arsenio? Mione? Where are you? I thought you were always going to be there for me.' **I say in a lonely voice, trying one more time.

Harry waves his hand-fin thing in front of my face, catching my attention. He begins to swim away, gesturing for me to follow him. Swimming like a dolphin, I quickly catch up to Harry.

'Testing… testing…' I hear Harry mutter. I turn to him curiously, raising my eyebrow. 'Sorry, I was testing to see if I could talk underwater. Whatever the hell Neville gave us let us talk underwater.' Harry says, but his voice is muffled by the water.

'Not to mention that the nasty little herb let us breathe underwater.' I say sarcastically. 'Alright… so, where do you think we should look? And wherever it is, we have to do it fast. We've already wasted time.' I say, my stressed side making yet another reappearance.

'Umm… I think that Fleur went that way...' Harry trails off, swimming over to that general direction, with me right at his tail, no pun intended. 'Oh! I think I see her, over there, by that forest of seaweed.' Harry exclaims, watching the air bubbles float to the top. 'well, there goes the last of my precious oxygen. I suppose the rest of my air supply will have to come from this wonderful water that clouds my vision.' Harry jokes, but the playful tone was absent from his voice. Hollow humor, if you will.

Up ahead, I just catch a glimpse of Fleur's feet disappear into the flowing green weed, but I stick my arm out in front of Harry, stopping him in mid motion. He turns to face me, curiosity shining in his eyes, but my focus remains on the seaweed forest in front of me. 'Why did you stop?' Harry asks me, but I jerk my head to the side, eyeing him to shut up.

'Shh… I have to think about something…' I say, silencing him. 'Something doesn't feel right… I mean think about it…' I trail off, waiting for Harry to finish it himself, but silence greets me, so I continue. 'Hello! This is the tri-wizard tournament! There is no way that the forest of seaweed doesn't have anything murderous lurking inside of it. I'm using her as a test. I just don't want to drown, or be torn limb by limb. Now shut up before something hears you!' I whisper as harshly as I can so Harry can hear me. He nods in understanding. He then turns his own attention to the seaweed, as if he too is expecting for something to come out and drag him further underwater.

Nothing comes. No trashing, no blood, no nothing. 'You think it's safe to go in?' I ask Harry, after several minutes of intense waiting, and there is no more time to waste. We've got an hour. And come to mention it, still nothing from my siblings. Figures. One of the most stressful events of my life, and my oh so wonderful siblings weren't there to support me like they said they were.

'I-I suppose so. I mean, we really have no choice. We're wasting time.' Harry says honestly. I nod, silently agreeing with him. But before we have the chance to swim any closer to the forest of weeds, Fleur shoots out of the weeds, with something attacking her. She furiously fights to get away from the creatures that shot out of the seaweed. To me, they looked like little water demons, and the worst part, they shot out of the seaweed bed, which is exactly where Harry and I were about to go. But, something positive did come out of seeing Fleur get attacked.

'Harry, do you know what this means?' I ask him, not taking my eyes off of Fleur, who just broke the surface of the water. He shakes his head, looking at me. 'Two things actually. One, Fleur just broke the surface, with nothing with her, so that means that there is no way that we can be last. Second, it means that we are getting close.' I say, feeling anxious for this thing to be over.

'Awesome, but I don't want to go through there.' Harry says, adding emphasis on the word **there **by pointing to the seabed.

'Agreed. Let's go around.' I say with one last retreating look at Fleur before both Harry and I begin to swim around the weed. 'Hey, Harry? What do you think we are looking for? It would be nice to know what we are looking for.' I say to him.

'No, but I have a clue. I haven't seen Mione or Ron all day. What about you? Have you seen Arsenio lately?' he asks, and I'm getting the feeling that he is on to something.

'No, I haven't, nor have I heard from Hermione. I've never heard from Ron. I can tell just by the looks he gives me and my brother in the hallway is enough to gather that he pretty much hates my guts.' I try and joke. I succeed, and I know it because Harry begins to laugh.

'Yeah, Ron really does hate you. Anyway, I think the things we are looking for have something to do with someone we love, or really care about. It did say that in the egg, so I believe we are looking for something along the lines of that.' Harry says, getting back to a serious note.

'Alright, so at least we have something to go on. We better get moving, or else who knows what would happen to us if we were late. They might send those water demons after us.' I say, kicking a tad faster, not knowing how much time we have left.

With the murky stinging at my eyes, and with the water flowing past my streamline body, Harry and I continue to swim past the seaweed bed. But, he then brings up another question. 'Hey, Malik? Do you think that it's them that we are looking for?' he asks, pushing seaweed out of his face.

'Them?' I ask, not really listening to him.

'Them, as in Hermione, Ron, and Arsenio. Do you think that they are down here?' Harry clarifies.

'I… I doubt it. I mean, they would have told me. They said that they were going to be here for me.' I say, not realizing who I'm talking to until it's too late.

'Yeah, I thought that the three of them were going to be there for me too.' Harry says, hesitating for just a moment. Obviously, he caught what I said, but he disregarded it. 'But seriously, do you think that they are going to be here?' he asks me again.

'I suppose anything is possible. We really have nothing else to go on, nor have we got the time to waste on it.' I answer, silently praying that my brother and sister aren't down here. I mean, who knows what will happen to them? They might be tethered to some savage hungry shark, or they might be tied against some anchor that is sinking to the bottom of the lake… oh sweet Merlin, I hope we find them soon.

Harry remained silent. We continued to swim forward, keeping our dwindling focus on the water around us, trying to spot something that would help us, that is until something different caught our attention. Blurred by the murky water, an old looking stone temple in its ruins laid just before us. The ruins of old pillars and stone steps laid half buried under a thin layer of sand. Just a bit further up, a set of pillars stood up from the rest. There were a couple of things hanging from the pillars, but I couldn't make out what was up there. 'Harry? Do you know what's up there? Hanging from those pillars up there?' I ask him, turning to look at him. He had the same dazed and awed look that was present on my face. But, he wasn't faced towards the same thing I was. His attention was elsewhere, focused on something I didn't notice before. His attention was focused on the wrinkled looking creatures holding tridents to our necks. On the contrary, that probably would have been better for me to notice that first.

'Mal-Malik!' Harry squeaked, tugging at my shirt and pointing wildly to creatures surrounding us. But for some reason, it didn't seem like they wanted to harm us, not yet at least.

'Sh… remain calm and follow me.' I whisper, gently pushing one of the tridents away from us. As I swim past, I study one of the creatures glaring at the two of us. They look familiar from somewhere, but I can't remember what. 'Harry? Do you know what those things are?' I ask him.

Harry takes a long look at the creatures as well, then, after a couple of moments, his face lights up in recognition. 'Yeah! Hagrid made us study those! We also learned about them in defense against the dark arts last year! These are mermaids!' Harry says quiet enough so that the savage looking mermaids don't hear us.

Wait? Mermaids? B-but, those look nothing like what I remember… I guess that the perceptions of mermaids are wrong. Whatever. I know what they are, and they are here… which means… 'Harry! We are here! We're at the place where we are supposed to retrieve something!' I exclaim happily, not caring if those so-called mermaids hear me. 'They wouldn't be here unless there was something worth guarding!' I exclaim, dancing my victory dance underwater. 'Come on! Let's go!' I say, kicking wildly, trying to go faster while trying to tug Harry with me.

Swimming past the hideous looking mermaids, Harry and I make our way towards the stone tower just before us. Now, I could make out what was before us, there were five people, suspended just a couple of centimeters off the floor of the tower's base. But, I couldn't make out who was hanging from the pillar. 'Harry? Do you know who those people are?' I ask him. Of course, he's been here longer, so maybe he knows who the people are.

Harry swims closer, taking a good look at the people before him. I hear him gasp in recognition. 'Malik! Come take a look! I bet you know the people here.' Harry says, sounding slightly relieved. I swim up next to him, and feel my stomach drop into feet, and my heart leap into my throat. Unconscious, my brother and sister hung from thin ropes in front of me.

'H-harry!' I say, choking back a sob. 'I-it's them!' _That's why they never responded! They were under! But… who am I supposed to save? _'Harry? It looks like we are the first ones her-'I'm cut off when someone darts out of the weed and grabs the girl in the middle, and pulls her upward.

'Well, there goes Cho. That was Cedric, in a giant bubble.' Harry says, musing. I don't take part his amusement. I don't know how to save! I have to _pick _between my brother and my sister! Well, I better think this through…

The only thing holding me back from saving both of them, are those giant pointy tridents those devils are pointing at us. And the fact that if I rescued Hermione, that would cause an uproar of curiosity and disbelief. I'm also not really supposed to show any family like affection for Hermione in public. Also, I'm kind of expected to save Arsenio anyway. I mean, he is my twin brother.

But what happens to those who aren't saved? Are they left down here to drown? I can't let that happen to my sister! Father would _kill _me! Not to mention Arsenio, Draco, Pansy, Astoria, Blaise, Ron, and myself. What am I supposed to do?

'Mate, snap out of it! We need to get one of them and get out of here!' Harry says, waving his fin in front of my face. But his attention snaps to the pillar again, staring at it. 'But, what about the fifth one? Fleur went up without saving anyone. So, what about Fleur's person? I need to put this together. Cho was for Cedric, Arsenio is for you, I suppose Ron is for me, Mione must be for Krum, and that young blond girl must have been for Fleur. What is going to happen to her?' Harry asks.

_Argh! That's not important to me right now! I don't know who to save! I can't choose between my brother and my sister! I don't care about that girl at the moment! I'm trying to decide which sibling I should save! _'I don't know Harry. All I know is that I just want to get out of here.' I say, sighing in defeat. I swim over to my brother and untie him. With one last desperate look at my sister, I drag Arsenio over to Harry and say with a hollow tone of voice, 'Come on Harry. Go untie one of them and let's get out of here.'

'But, what abou-'Harry cuts off when a huge shark darts out of nowhere and yanks my sister free.

'Hermione! NO!' I shout, letting go of Arsenio's wrist to swim after Hermione, but that damn shark was too fast. 'Harry! They want us to hurry up! That was probably just a warning! And we have to go after her! Come _on!' _I shout at him, swimming down to grab Arsenio so I can drag him with me. 'Harry! Come on!' I shout at him, my patience ebbing away.

'Malik! Calm down! That was Krum.' Harry states simply. He shifts his gaze upward, where the shark now possesses arms and legs, with another body next to him. It was Hermione!

'O-oh…' was all I could murmur. I grab Arsenio's wrist and pull him back down to Harry. 'I-I knew that. P-please j-just grab someone and get this over w-with.' I say embarrassed.

It was just Arsenio, Ron, and the little girl left. 'But, what about the little girl? We can't just leave her down here.' Harry argues. He swims towards the pillar and begins to untie Ron. 'We have to save her too.' He says determinedly. Once he was done with Ron, he moved over to the little blond girl. That clearly upset the mermaids. They darted over to Harry stuck their tridents at Harry's neck.

'Only one!' the closest one hissed, sticking the trident in further to the point where Harry begin to gag. 'Take one only!' another one hissed.

'But, no one is here to save her! Her champion couldn't make it!' Harry screams, pointing to the girl. 'Fleur was attacked by… by…' he trails off, not knowing exactly what attacked Fleur.

'Mermaids! Fleur was attacked by mermaids!' I exclaim, looking back to the past, remembering what the creatures look like.

'Yeah, that.' Harry says, jerking his hand behind his back. I notice, but I don't know what he means. He points behind him again, this time more calmly, and I can tell what he's pointing to. He's pointing the girl tied to the pole. _Harry, I swear if I live through this, I'm gonna kill you. _I swim slowly towards the pole, trying my hardest not to get noticed by the mermaids. It doesn't seem as if I'm moving fast enough, so I kick my fins a bit harder. Just wanting to get out of the water, I rapidly untie the girl, and shove her upward, letting her float to the surface. Harry did the same, shoving Ron upward, letting him too float to the top.

This sent the mermaids into a rage, this time, tens of dozens of mermaids came flying towards us, their tridents pointed straight at us. 'Harry! Swim up! They're coming straight towards us!' I yell at him, shoving a mermaid off my feet and furiously begin to kick upward. Harry swims up right at my tail, and together we furiously begin to kick harder. The mermaids swam up to us and begin to drag us downward.

'Malik! What are we going to do? They're going to drag us under!' Harry screams, struggling to get free.

_This is where my siblings would be extremely helpful right now. _I think desperately to myself. _Think Malik! You need to think if you want to live! Ok, so, the only thing you need is to find something that will give you a greater thrust so you can get away from these damn things. Ah! Got it! Good thing Mione made me study that book of spells! _'Harry! Your w-'the words choked in my throat. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't swim fast enough anymore. I couldn't talk. _Oh sweet Merlin! The gillyweed! It must have worn off! B-but, didn't Neville say it lasted an hour... Wait a minute! That means our hour is up! _My hands flail around for my body, trying desperately to find my wand. I don't even remember where I put it! Oh bloody hell! Where did I put it! Finally, my hand runs over my slim, skinny wand in the pocket of my wet suit. Ripping it out of my pocket, I murmur 'Asendio…' with whatever oxygen I had left. My wand understands me, and shoots me upward, out of the grasp of the mermaids.

The cold air stings my body all over, as I land floppily on the deck of the stadium. Harry lands the same way right beside me. _He caught on to the victory of the moment… _ I think to myself, as I cough and hack, trying to get my breathing under control.

'Harry!' I hear a relieved voice scream behind us. I weakly turn my head, to see Hermione, wrapped in a towel, rush up to Harry, and grab him by the shoulder and kiss him on the head. 'Harry! You did it!' she exclaims happily. She turns and gives me a weak smile. Harry's ginger head friend crawls up to Harry and begins to speak to him. I turn my attention the person furiously trying to grab my attention to my left.

'Mate, hello? MALIK!' he screams in my ear, finally grabbing my attention. 'You did it! Even though you came in last…' he trails off. Loud ringing cut him off.

'Champions! Your placements have been entered! In third, Miss. Fleur Delacour!' Dumbledore announces, waiting for the small applause to die down. 'In second, Mr. Cedric Diggory, using his bubble head charm!' he announces, repeating what he did before. With each pause, I can feel the tension growing inside me and in the atmosphere around me. Argh, it must be really frustrating to hear this man when he's making announcements.

'And, there is a three way tie for first! Mr. Viktor Krum, Mr. Harry Potter, and Mr. Malik Snape! Let's hear congratulations for the three of them!' Dumbledore says, with that trademark smile on his face.

All that tension immediately snaps in half and dissolves into indescribable excitement and noise. A huge wave of roaring and cheering boomed throughout the whole stadium. 'Malik! Harry! You did it! You're tied for first!' Arsenio exclaims, engulfing me in a hug, pulling me to my feet. Hermione runs over to me and engulfs me a hug as well, not caring who sees her.

**'Ahh! You did it! YOU DID IT!' **My sister screams in my mind, making me cringe.

** 'And you did it without our help!' **Arsenio adds on, sounding just as excited as my sister. **'And you're tied for first! That's amazing!' **Arsenio adds on again.

** 'You actually have a chance at winning this!' **Mione says sounding absolutely gleeful. **'Oh my Merlin! We have to start researching! Who knows what could be in the last task? Anything!' **Mione says, completely ruining the moment with school. Typical Hermione.

** 'Alright, let's do this…' **I say, giving in to my sister with the most amused smile plastered on my face. Hearing her squeal, I stand up next to my sister and brother. **'But for now, we party' **I say, raising my hands up in victory.

Harry walks up to my right, sharing that same victory grin that was stuck on my face. He grabs my wrist and throws it up in the air, screaming in victory and triumph.

**A/N: Oh, I **_**promise **_**you that you will love the next three chapters. A hint for anyone? I will give you a hint if I get a lot of reviews! :) Oh wait, I need to do my trademark smile. :] There we go! NOW, how 'bout you all click that wonderful little button at the bottom. :] Go on! **

**Oh I can't contain it anymore! I'm planning a fight between a certain three people. Two against one. Review and tell me who you think it is. :] (- Evil trademark smile) Review and tell me who you think is in the fight. The next chapter sets the whole thing up. **

**Oh, and maybe this will be motivation for some of you to review. If you review, I will give you something secret about this story. I don't know what chapter it will be from, it might be small, it might be huge. (Beta readers! If you want to know as well, you know where to find me.)**

**Motivation enough for you? Good! There's that review button! :] **


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot and my OC's! :] Oh, and I own my trademark smiley face. (This one! :]..) **

**A/N: SUMMER! :] Always a fun time. Now who's ready for feuding? Because it all begins here! This sets the mini plot for the fight I'm planning. Oh Merlin, I've said too much. Just read on! :] **

**Commencing with chapter 25!**

Life as a Snape: Chapter 25

'Urgh, can you keep quiet Mione? My head is killing me…' Harry mutters, clutching his head.

'Well that's what you get for partying for the past twenty four hours.' Ron muses, helping his friend off the couch. 'Come on, let's go eat. Food will make you feel better.' He says.

'Food will just make you feel better Ron…' Harry mutters again, but accepts his friend's help.

This lightens up my already sky high mood. 'It's amazing what food can do.' I say, laughing at the two of them. 'Food fixed your friendship.'

'It did not! I apologized for being such an arse!' Ron exclaimed, a look of fake shock on his face.

'Guys, please stop, my headache is only getting worse. Let's just go to the Great Hall.' Harry murmurs, dragging Ron with him out of the portrait hole with me right behind them.

The excited chatter echoed throughout the hall, making Harry cringe over. 'Ergh, people need to shut up.' He groans.

'How about we just bring you a plate of food Harry?' Ron suggests, putting his hand on Harry's back, helping him stand up straight. 'It would be better for your hangover.' He jokes.

'It's… not… a… hangover…' Harry corrects him. 'I'm… just… tired.'

'Whatever you say. Come on Hermione, let's go eat. We'll bring Harry his breakfast later.' Ron says, grabbing my hand, taking me with him. Harry turns and goes in the other direction back in the direction of the Gryffindor common room.

'So Ron, why didn't you just apologize earlier? It would have made everything that much easier.' I ask him as we are taking our seats at the table.

'I… I don't know. I suppose it was just my pride or ego…' he trails off, turning his attention towards the entrance of the Great Hall. His entire face goes from guilty Ron to disgusted Ron. 'Speaking of swollen ego and pride, look who just walked in the room.' He says spitefully.

My attention turns to the entrance where Ron is staring, and feel my heart soar. Walking in, Draco and my twin brothers make their way over to the Slytherin table. My smile grows bigger as I see them laugh together.

'Mione… Mione? HERMIONE!' Ron says, trying three different times to get my attention away from my brothers.

'Huh?' I say intelligently, turning back to Ron.

'Nothing, you were just ogling at ferret boy Malfoy and those dumb arse twins.' Ron scoffs off, sending my anger through the room.

'_What?' _I scream at him, standing up in fury, glaring daggers at Ron's terrified looking eyes. 'Repeat it again, and I _promise_ you, you will be at the bottom of the lake for the rest of your life!' I scream at him. Then, with one snap, my hand flies across his face, making a deafening crack across the hall, followed by my break from the room.

**'Come to the library. We need to start studying, now.' **I command my brothers, just wanting to be in the company of someone that I don't want to beat up right now.

**'Ok ok! Can Draco come? He's asking about you. Oh, and so is Theo, and Blaise, and Pansy, and Astoria.' **Malik says, giving in. Hearing my irritated voice must have made him.

**'Yes, sure. I just don't want to be near any Gryffindor's right now.' **I say, heading straight for the library. I suppose we need to start researching for what could be in the last task. It's surely to be the hardest of the three tasks anyway.

**'Ok, on our way. We'll be there in five.' **Malik says, pulling out, with Arsenio right behind him.

I sit down in the monsters section of the library and moodily pick up a book about monsters and wait for my brothers to show up. As I scan the words on the page, it gets me thinking. What do they exactly have in mind for this task? It has to be something even more dangerous than the first two tasks. I scan down the list of the top seven most dangerous creatures in London. I know they could get their monsters from anywhere, but might as well start with something familiar. Number one, yonggary. _W-what are those? I'm going to have to look those up. _Number two, dragons. _Good, already fought one of those. _Number three, dementors. _Really? Dementors? Interesting… _Number four, werewolves. _Well, I can believe that. _Number five, vampires. _Oh, haven't had that as a DADA professor yet. _Number six, boggarts. _Really? I thought they would be less of a threat… _Number seven, trolls. _Really? Trolls? Pfft. Been there, done that. But, I guess I will ask for their opinion. _

But before I get the chance to read any further, I feel someone tap on my shoulder. 'What?' I scream, grabbing two hand fulls of my own hair while whipping around to the person behind me, and feel my frustration die away. 'Oh, I'm sorry.' I say to my startled but amused twin brothers.

'Stressed much?' Arsenio muses, taking a seat across from me while grabbing a book on monsters as well.

'No, I'm just ticked off is all.' I say, scrolling through the list of monsters. 'Hey, can you guys sit down? I've got some questions.' They all sit, waiting for my questions. 'Ok, well, my first question is, trolls. Do you think that there are going to be any of them in this next task?' I ask them, wanting their opinion.

'Trolls?' Malik squeaks, sounding terrified.

'Trolls? Really Mione?' Arsenio scoffs it off, laughing. 'Mione, Malik fighting a troll is like a dude fighting a boat the size of the _Titanic_. There's no way.' Arsenio backs himself up while successfully making everyone else laugh, including myself.

'Wait, what?' Astoria asks, not fully realizing the joke.

'Wow, do all purebloods not know about this?' I ask in disbelief. Astoria shakes her head. 'The _Titanic _was the biggest boat to ever set sail in its time. It was considered unsinkable, but it veered off course and crashed into an iceberg, causing it to sink in less than two hours.' I recite to them.

'Oh, ok. Well, that's tragic, but it makes the joke funnier.' Astoria says, laughing with the rest of us. 'And don't underestimate the size of a fully grown troll. My Father works with industry that tames trolls. One fully grown Norwegian mountain troll knocked a dozen men over the side of a mountain and into the bottom of a lake with one swing of his pinky toe!' Astoria adds on a more serious note.

'Ok, enough about trolls, please?' Malik asks in an unnatural high pitched voice. 'What were your other questions?' he ponders, regaining his normal low pitched voice.

'Yeah, do any of you guys know what a yonggary is?' I ask them. My heart sank when my eyes were met with their confused and lost looks.

'A yonggary?' Blaise asks sounding totally baffled.

'That sounds like some tricked out yogurt.' Arsenio jokes again, but only this time, he gets no response. Everyone's focus is centered on me.

'Is it in that book you're looking at?' Draco asks, standing up from his seat to sit next to me so he can look over my shoulder.

'Yeah, it's in the list of top seven most deadly monsters in London; actually, it was at the top of the list.' I say. Malik squeaks again, lifting his knees up to chest, and then circling them in his arms. He looks absolutely terrified. I look away from my horrified brother and turn to the chapter focusing on yonggarys. 'It says here that the yonggary is a type of cat.'

'Cat? It's a _cat? _And it beat out a dementor, and a dragon, and werewolf? Are you joking? That's hilarious!' Theo bursts out and doubles over laughing. 'It's a cat!'

'Yeah, but it's a cat that take your life away with one direct look into its eye so shut up and listen to me!' I burst out at Theo irrationally. He gets the point and backs off immediately. He turns his head and looks away from me. 'Hey, Theo, I'm sorry. It's just been a frustrating morning. I'm sorry.' I say sincerely. I walk over to him and put my hand on his shoulder.

He looks up and makes eye contact with me and smiles brightly. 'It's alright Mione! I know how stressed out you can be sometimes. I understand. You're just looking out for your brother. I would be just as stressed if you were in trouble.' He says, slinging a shoulder around me, just like he used to. I laugh and sit down next to him, and open my book open to the yonggary page.

'What happened to Ester?' I whispered into Theo's ear, noticing that everyone else turned to talk to someone else, all except for Draco who was wearing that same old cold, expressionless look on his face.

Theo's body suddenly turned rigid. 'Oh, Ester… well… I, um, Mione? Can I please just tell you later?' he says in a quiet voice.

His childlike voice takes me by surprise. 'Oh, of course Theo! Anything! I'll meet you after we are done here, is that alright? I'll take a walk with you ok?' I suggest.

'Thanks Mione…' Theo says, his voice only lightening a little. 'Now, you said something about a yonggary?' he prompts me, wanting me to start talking again.

'Oh, right!' I say, opening the book once more and turning back to the page on yonggary. 'Ok, as I was saying before, a yonggary is a species of cat. But it says here that they are one of the most dangerous predators to ever stalk the forests of London.' I recite, then pause to let everyone absorb the information.

'Oh wonderful. So Harry and I are going to be thrown into some arena with a yonggary? What makes them so special?' Malik speaks up, his voice rung clear with disbelief.

'Well, they have one row of forty six sharp teeth, with two very large and very sharp canine teeth in front. They also have long pointed claws, four at the end of each paw. They have short black fur that helps them blend in with the night. See? Here's one right here, in the textbook!' I say, flipping the textbook around to show everyone else.

The picture shows a powerful looking black cat that resembled a saber tooth tiger, with its muscles rippling on its back and powerful forearms. Hissing at us, the picture in its textbook opens its powerful jaw to reveal a row of dozens of finely sharpened teeth. 'Well, it was nice knowing you Malik.' Blaise says, slapping his mate on the back.

'What else is there to know about it Mione?' Pansy asks excitedly.

'Well, it says here that they are vicious and ill-tempered, and extremely territorial. They hunt at night in packs of five or six. They can also-'

'Ok ok, from what it sounds like, they are like normal cats. But what makes them so dangerous?' Blaise asks sounding genuinely concerned and curious at the same time.

'They can eject poison into victims that they bite, and they can tear a human I half with the flick of their claw. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is their eyes.' I say being yet again cut off by someone.

'Their eyes? Is that like the basilisk?' Blaise asks yet again. 'Can they take people's lives?'

'I was getting there. It depends on the mood of the cat. At their normal mood, their eyes are black, once again to help them while hunting. But when they are cornered, their eyes will turn bright red, and if you look straight into the red eyes, you will turn evil for the time being. It will give it the opportunity it needs to get away. ' I respond, answering Blaise's halfway.

'Evil? What do you mean by that?' Malik asks, beating Blaise to another question.

'Evil, I guess meaning that it controls your mind, and force you to think evilly or something. And to answer your question, Blaise, yes, it can take people's lives, but only as a last resort, when it is threatened.' I answer him, my voice devoid of everything except seriousness.

'So, what else? Can you just name the list?' Arsenio asks.

'Yonggary, dragon, dementor, troll, vampire, werewolf, and boggart, in no particular order.' I answer.

'Oh, crap, I'm late for potions! Come on Astoria, we have to go!' Pansy says standing up and grabbing Astoria's wrist. 'Bye guys! I'll talk to you later!' She says, and with that, she and Astoria bolt out of the library. That leaves just me, Theo, Draco, Blaise, and my twin brothers.

'Actually, I have to go too, I'm late for charms. I have to go as well. Goodbye, I'll talk to you mates later.' Blaise says, getting up and leaving as well. But, as Blaise leaves, I notice something, rather someone that I really didn't notice before, something having to do with Draco.

Sitting on the opposite side of the sitting area, where I used to be sitting, Draco sits on the couch, ignoring the both of us. He sat glaring at the floor beneath him. Then, out of nowhere, he just gets up and leaves, without saying a word.

'Wait, Draco…' I say, making a move to stand up to follow him out, but something keeps me back. I stand up and look at Theo, who is still sitting on the ground with his head turned away from me. 'Oh, nevermind.' I say, noting that I won't be able to catch up to him. 'Come on Theo, you promised me a walk.' I say, offering my hand.

He takes it with that same innocent smile again. 'Ok, come on Hermione. Let's go near the lake. I'll tell you there.' He says.

Together, he takes my hand and we walk out of library and head straight for the lake. But on the way there, Theo begins to talk. 'I guess you wanna know what happened between me and Ester huh?' he asks, laughing hollowly.

'Well, yes. I would like to know, but if you don't want to tell me I am perfectly fine with that.' I say, respecting his pain.

'No, I will tell you. Besides, people say that it's better to talk it out with people rather than keep it bottled up inside.' Theo begins, but I cut him off before he continues any further.

'You haven't told anybody?' I ask him in disbelief. I guess Theo is one of the more quiet Slytherins.

'No, but I'm about to.' Theo says. He takes a deep breath and calms himself down before he begins. 'Well, after the Yule Ball, Ester made me promise that I would come and visit her every weekend and every break we had, so I did, minus the one I spent with you and your brothers. Anyway, I would go over there, and we do regular things, like muggle things, such as go to amusement parks and stuff. I would go there every weekend, and I started to like her more and more. So, one weekend, I finally gathered up the courage to ask her to be my girlfriend.' He says, pausing. The tears begin to form in his sad eyes. He turns and looks away. I take his hand and take him under the willow tree we normally hang out under. I place my hand on his shoulder and let him know that he can continue.

'Theo, shh… take a deep breath. You know you have my permission to stop any time.' I say gently, hugging his arm close to me. But for a moment, the only thing I could hear was the rustling of a nearby bush.

'She said yes, she would be my girlfriend. After that, s-she kissed me. I thought I was on cloud nine. I was positively in love. I showered her in gifts and love, and I thought that she felt the same way…' he trails off again. He breaks down in tears once more, letting his head fall into his hands, sobs racking his whole body.

I felt my heart snap at the sight of Theo like this. He's normally the one that strives to make everyone smile. He's the one with the smile that's always plastered on his face. 'Shh… Theo! Theo, look at me, please.' I plead with him. I bring my hand under his chin and lift his head up to face me. I felt the tears leak out of my own eyes. 'Theo, you don't have to tell me, especially if it upsets you this much. I can't stand to see you cry like this.' I say, but he shakes off my offer.

'No, I will continue.' He says, taking several deep breaths before he finishes. 'After, about a month of us dating, I came over one weekend, and… and…' he stutters, the sobs choking his voice. 'I saw her kissing another guy.' He tells me, before he breaks down once more, the tears slowly making their way down his face. His dejected eyes leak with tears with depression and grief. 'S-she s-said that I w-was m-merely a d-distraction f-from her real boyfriend, that I w-was merely j-just a play t-thing.' He confesses.

'Theo, I had no idea… I'm, I'm so sorry…' I trail off, feeling my heart further shatter into a million pieces. 'Theo, I had no idea…' I sob. The rustling got louder.

'H-hey now Mione, shh… there's no need to get upset over this…' Theo says, calming himself down. 'Shh Mione, the only thing worse than what I've been through is seeing you cry like this. Shh…' he says gently. He takes me into his arms and hugs me. I hug him back, feeling my emotions calm down.

'Are you sure that you're fine Theo?' I ask him, looking up at him.

He hesitates for a while before answering. 'No, but I will be. I mean, sure I lost someone I love, but there was nothing I could have done. If she doesn't want me around, then I'm no one to tell her otherwise. But, it hurts like nothing else, but I'll survive.' He says, letting that Theo smile reappear on his face. 'You know what I've always wanted?' he asks me, smiling brightly down at me.

I wipe my nose on my sleeve and look up at him. 'What?' I ask him, trying to regain control over my own emotions. I'm envious that he can gather himself up so quickly.

'I've always wanted eyes on my feet.' He says, somehow managing to lighten the mood with those seven words.

'Theo, it never ceases to amaze me how you do that, break the tension like that. And about those eyes, you would get hurt every time you took a step and a black eye every time you kicked something.' I laugh, glad that he could cheer me up.

'Yeah, but I would always be able to see where I'm going.' Theo counters smartly, laughing as well. 'And besides, I would have better aim when kicking things. I would have the best aim on a football team.' He says laughing.

'You play football?' I ask him, impressed. 'I didn't know you played muggle sports.'

'Well, I play the real version of football, not the American version. But, whatever. I used to play as a kid, my parents signed me up for it. That was a very interesting experience.' Theo laughs. 'I don't anymore, but sometimes, when I'm alone at home, I dig out that old ball and kick it around.' Theo adds.

Theo just sits there, with his arm around me. 'You know Mione, your laugh lifted my spirits. Thank you.' He says, turning to face me.

'Well thank yourself, you are the one that made me laugh!' I laugh at Theo. He cracks a smile, then stands up. 'Come on, I bet your dear friends are looking for you. Come on.' He says, offering his hand. I take it and stand up.

**THEO'S POV**

_Wow, it's amazing what Hermione's laugh can do for a person. It's like an angel laugh, it even has that heavenly ring to it. She's an amazing person, always looking out for her friends. It's just too bad that she's into Draco._

We walk together back down to the castle. I see her hand hanging loosely by her side. _I wonder what would happen if I tried to grab it… _I jerk my hand towards her, and try to grab it, but it's hopeless. I don't want to go down the same road again. 'Hermione?' I ask her, sounding uneasy.

'Yeah Theo?' she asks in that same angelic voice.

'I, um, I have to get to class in five minutes, I'll see you later I suppose.' I stutter, turning away in embarrassment once more. _Come on, why can't you keep your cool when you are around her? _

'Oh, ok Theo. I'll see you later.' She says, but she doesn't leave. She quickly looks around her shoulder, I guess to make sure that no one is watching. Then, before I even realize what she's doing, she swiftly kisses on the cheek, then walks away. My hand somehow finds its way to my cheek, which is still burning hot from where she kissed me. The biggest smile spreads across my face, and if I could fly, I would be in the stratosphere. With the same smile on my face, I begin to walk down the hallway, but someone stops me in my path.

'Nott, I'm gonna kill you.' a voice said deathly quiet.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I walk back down to the Gryffindor common room feeling worse than I did before. _Why did I do that to him! I can't lead him on like this… _I think miserably to myself. _I have to go and find him. _I say. I turn back around and head back in the direction where I went. I head straight back to the back entrance of the castle and head and stopped. _Theo never did tell me where he was going…_ I decide to head down the corridor, when I finally hear something. I hear the sound of something being hit echoing throughout the hallway. My head jerks towards the sound and my feet bolt towards the sound.

I round the corner and my eyes are met with horror, Draco was kneeled on top of someone's throat punching him repeatedly in the face.

'Draco! Get off him!' I yell, running over to Draco and yanking him harshly off of the kid he was murdering. It was just then I realized that Draco was punching Theo! 'Draco! Why the hell were you punching Theo?' I scream, very disappointed that he would punch one of his best friends.

What shocked me was how far he even went to punch his best friend. Theo was bleeding badly out of a cut above his right eye, and that same eye was beginning to swell. His nose was bleeding badly as well. But what shocked me even more; Draco didn't have a scratch on him, which means that Theo didn't throw a punch back.

'Because he's stealing you away from me!' He yelled back at me. It seemed as if every aspect of him was radiating anger, his eyes, his expression, the clenching of his fists, the constricting of every muscle in his body, his furious breaths, everything.

'He is not stealing me away from anybody.' I state, punctuating every word. I help Theo off his back and help him stand up next to me. _How dare he! Theo was hurting! I couldn't pretend like something wasn't happening!_

'Then explain why he took you on a walk, why the two of you were making out under that tree, and why you just kissed him on the cheek a moment ago!' Draco says angrily. He stands a couple meters away from me, but it's enough distance to tell that he isn't happy. But to tell you the truth, I wasn't the most gleeful person alive at the moment either. At the moment, I too was furious.

'First off, we were not making out under that tree! We were _talking! ´_ I shout, punctuating the word talking with more force. 'Second, friends can't hang out together?'

'Oh yeah, then why did you kiss hi-'

'Draco! Stop!' Theo says, stepping in between us. 'Draco, I took her on a walk because I was going to talk to her about something private-'

'Private, what, like a love life with her?' Draco shouts, enraged. He strides forward to hit Theo once more, but I pull Theo backwards to protect him from any more damage.

'Yes, a love life, but not with her. I needed to-'

'You just needed to pull her away so you could then begin a love life with her! Oh, you insignificant little bastard! 'Draco yells, cutting himself off by pulling out his wand, and pointing it straight at Theo.

I step in front of Theo to protect him. I shove him behind me. I'm about to say something to Draco, but Theo beats me to it. 'Draco stop! My girlfriend was using me and I wanted to talk to someone about it!' Theo confesses, yelling from behind me. He steps out from behind me and says in a piano tone, 'I just wanted to tell someone about it, and Hermione is the only person I know that really wouldn't make fun of me. I mean, I guess I could have gone to Pansy or Astoria, but Pansy is too busy gawking at Blaise and Astoria is too busy mooning over Arsenio! So, I came to her instead.' He says in a quiet voice.

Draco's face softens considerably, but before he gets the chance get the chance to say anything, someone else beats him to it.

'Hermione?'

Inwardly groaning, I turn around to face an even more furious Ron, whose face was as red as his fiery hair. 'H-hi Ron. Whatcha' doing?' I ask, trying my best to sound innocent.

'W-what are you _doing?' _He screams at me, shoving Theo away from me. He grabs my wrist and pulls me away from both of them. Everything from earlier that morning floods back to me, and the anger surges back through my veins.

'Why? Jealous?' I sneer at him, but it all goes horribly wrong. I didn't think this through enough. _Ron doesn't know why I'm so mad, he doesn't even know why I slapped him in the first place. Bloody hell, what is wrong with me and not thinking through things anymore? _

'What's wrong with you today Mione?' Ron asks gentler. 'You slapped me in the Great Hall, and now you talking to Nott and Malfoy?'

'Hey, us? Talking to _that? _As if Weaslbee, why would we, esteem purebloods be talking to the lowest of the low?' Theo spats at Ron, glaring at him.

Draco catches on. 'There's no point in us talking to that filthy mudblood anyway! Now come on Theo, we have to go get scanned for lung cancer. I think I have it now from breathing in contaminated air.' Draco sneers, then he and Theo stride away together, snickering the whole way.

'Oh, they were insulting Harry, so I decided to try and fight them back, but it wasn't working.' I lie smoothly.

'Yeah, but that's not what I heard, down the hallway.' Ron says, still eyeing me.

My confidence falters. 'Oh, th-that must have been something else….' I trail off, hoping he doesn't catch anything.

He nods in understanding, but something tells me that he didn't buy it. 'Ok Hermione. Come on, can you come to lunch with me, I mean… depends, is it going to hurt?' he jokes.

'It won't hurt, I'm sorry, by the way.' I apologize, but I can tell that Ron is still suspicious. I know him well enough to know that he doesn't understand why I slapped him and to know that he doesn't fully believe my excuse because he heard everything he needed to know with his own two ears.

Ron escorts me to the Great Hall, but his eyes are focused on anywhere but me. My guess is he is still looking out for the Slytherins. Anyway, he leads us to our table and to our seats, where Harry and Ginny were already sitting.

'Hermione! Nice of you to show!' Ginny laughs. 'I'm surprised Ron could pull you out of that library.' She adds on, smiling at me.

'W-what? W-why would he have a h-hard time p-pulling me out?' I ask, shocked beyond words that Ginny found out. Crap, there's no hiding anything from her!

She gave me a weird look. 'Well, everyone in the school knows that you and that library are practically inseparable.' She said, making my heart stop at the word _knows _and beat again when she said _you and that library. Good, she doesn't know. _

But something in my gut tells me that she's going to figure it out, one way or another.

'Mione?' Harry speaks up, swallowing another bite of his apple, which was now just a core. I turn to face him, waiting for him to ask his question. But he doesn't say anything. Instead, he leans over and whispers, 'Were you there with Draco and the others? I saw them head down there this morning.' He asks, hoping that he is quiet enough so that just I can hear him.

'W-what? Why would I be there with Malfoy?' I say rather loudly, trying desperately to keep my over on.

'You were there with Malfoy! I knew I wasn't wrong!' Ron bursts out, towering over me. It's a good thing that we were early for lunch, or we would be attracting a lot of attention to ourselves.

'Wait, I am so lost, what are you talking about? You were in the library with Malfoy? Why Mione?' Ginny asks, not raising her voice, but that tone of shock and surprise were definitely in there.

'No, I wasn't… can we talk about this later?' I ask meekly, just hoping to get away from the situation.

'No, I'm grabbing an apple, and we are heading down to the common room right now!' Harry says defiantly. He grabs a large red apple of the top of the fruit bowl and then grabs my wrist. Ron takes the other. 'Come on.' He says. _Why is Harry going along with this? He knows perfectly well that I'm friends with Draco and the rest, Merlin, he is too! Why is he going along with Ron and Ginny? Is it to prevent another fight?_

'Harry! Why are you doing this?' I whisper harshly into his ear.

'Because, do you want to be fighting with Ron and Ginny?' Harry asks me back, reasoning with me. That shuts me up, knowing that the feuds could go on forever. I stay silent, for the fear of me saying something else that would dig me further into the hole that I dug for myself.

They continue to drag me down the hallway until we reach the Gryffindor common room. Ron moodily said the pass word to the Fat Lady, who swung open eyeing Ron with distaste.

They drag me over to the deserted couch and threw me down on it. 'Now, spill it Mione.' Ron demands, looming over me. 'Why were you hanging out with Malfoy?'

'I- uh, I don't k-know w-what you're talking about.' I stutter, lost for words. _What am I supposed to say? Say something else, and I'm down the drain! But, I'm going to have to tell them sooner or later... but when?_ 'I wasn't anywhere near Malfoy today Ron!' I say more confidently even though I don't feel that way.

'Hermione, I was there. I saw you talking next to him, along with most of the other Slytherins.' Ginny says, siding with her own brother. _How could she! I'm her best friend!_

'Listen, I really can't tell you guys.' I whisper, closing my eyes. This time last year, I would be enjoying my year, punching Draco when he was still my enemy, figuring out the mystery behind the map with my two best friends, and all it took to rip that apart was one little secret. 'I'm sorry, I just can't tell you.'

'Why not Hermione.' Ron asked, but it sounded more like a command than a question. It sounded as if the longer this conversation went on, the angrier Ron got. Ginny on the other hand, looked frustrated, but didn't let it show as much as Ron did. 'Tell me!' He screamed, letting his frustration reach an all-time high.

'I can't tell you!' I say, trying my best to keep calm. But before I can go on a tirade on why they shouldn't cross me, someone walks through the portrait hole, stopping in my track.

'Miss. Granger?'

I turn around to face a very serious looking headmaster. 'Y-yes sir?' I ask nervously.

'I need you to come with me, to my office.' Dumbledore says, motioning me towards the portrait hole. 'Come on, someone is here to see you.' He says, answering my unasked question. I guess he knows me well enough to always answer my unasked question, _am I in trouble? _

'Ok, I'm coming sir.' I say, walking away from the feuding ones.

'Where are you going, and who is here to see you?' Ron persists on asking me questions. 'Why do you keep disappearing?' he asks, noticing that I've been gone a lot. Over the past couple of weeks since Christmas, Ivory has been coming to visit me twice every week. But every time she seems to come, I'm hanging out with Ron, Ginny, and Harry.

_Wait a minute, Harry doesn't know about this! Merlin, what happened to my life? Just this time last year, I could tell anything to these three! Oh Merlin… _

'Hermione? Where _are _you going? Ron's right, you seem to be disappearing a lot more often this year. Can't you tell us?' Harry asks more gently than Ron, but I could tell just by his facial expression that he was surprised that I kept a secret from him.

'I, I just can't. I'm sorry.' I say, turning away from him and the other two. But I can tell just from the atmosphere that I just left, was that they were all very, very disappointed with me.

'Ok, just this one last combo Hermione, you need this to pass the water final I'm going to give you.' Ivory says to me.

'What! There's a final? What do I have to know? When is it?' I say panic stricken, while letting all the water I was bending fall back to the lake.

But Ivory doesn't react the way I thought, instead, she just begins to laugh. 'No Hermione, it's not like what you think. And first off, Dumbledore told me that you are at the top of your class, so I thought that I would give more, preparation. And this isn't' some written final. I just want to repeat the moves and techniques I showed you. And here is the only question I'm really going to ask for a spoken answer. What style of material arts is water bending based on?' she asks me.

'Oh, that's easy, Tai Chi.' I answer easily.

Ivory beams at me. 'See? You'll be fine Hermione. And besides, I've been teaching you everything. And every move that I showed you, you performed it back perfectly. You'll be fine.' She reassures me, but she can probably sense my uneasiness. 'Do you want me to run through the final?' she asks me, with that same all-knowing smile. I nod eagerly. 'Ok! Just a moment, I need to teach you one more move.' She says, and then she pauses. 'Oh, before I forget, I told your other instructors about your school habits. They too will come during school year, and they will also give you a final at the end.' She says.

'Ok. Now, what's that new move you wanted to me try?' I ask her, getting in ready position. 'What's it called?'

'This is actually really basic; it's just a kick with your left heel. Here, let me show you.' She says. She then raises her left leg, bending water with that leg. She then jumps up, and freezes the water, sending it flying towards a tree nearby. She then lands gracefully back down on the ground. 'Well, part of the technique isn't freezing the water; you can really do anything, even slice through wood.' She says.

'Oh, ok, let me try it.' I say, getting ready. I raise my left leg, exactly as she did, and bend the water beneath my feet. I jump upward and fling my leg, turning my whole body to gain momentum. Once I think I have enough momentum, I shoot the water towards the tree with the ice shards wedged inside. I froze the water, turning it into sharp ice shards, and fling it towards the tree. I land graceful back down on my feet, and turn back to my master, scanning her face for approval.

Her face is beaming at me. 'That's it Hermione! See? I told you there was nothing to worry about!' She praises me, with a smile on her face. Then she turned to the setting sun, which just disappeared over the mountain, leaving behind an array of vibrant colors of sunset orange, deep red, and deep purple. 'It's getting really late. I think I also made you late for dinner. I'll meet you later this week.' She says.

We walk back together to the castle. I water bend some water out of the lake, and I begin to play with it, freezing and unfreezing it. 'You know Ivory; I'm really enjoying being a water bender. You've been doing this all your life?' I ask her.

'Yeah, I have. I mean, ever since my parents were taken away from me, I've had to fend for myself. I mean, sure I lived with relatives, but I was taught to fend for myself. So, they found me a water bending master, and I just have been water bending ever since.' She says, letting me in on more of her childhood.

I drop the water and let it fall to the ground. 'Wow, well, I'm just now getting to know my real family, but I had a pretty nice childhood, despite the fact that I was ripped away from my family. But, my muggle parents gave me everything. I had the best education, and the best dental care.' I tell her as we walk into the main hallway, to the entrance of the Great Hall, where everyone was already seated and eating. 'Well, I guess I'll see you later then.' I say, waving goodbye to my water bending master.

As she walks away, I walk in the other direction, towards the Gryffindor table. I see my seat is open, so I go and sit next to Harry, Ron, and Ginny. But, I felt the cold shoulder almost immediately. 'Um, hey guys.' I say, filling my plate nervously.

'Harry, when is Quidditch ever going to start up this year?' Ron asks, completely ignoring me.

'Next year. I don't think they allow Quidditch during the tri-wizard tournament.' Ginny answers for him. _What? Ginny is ignoring me too! I didn't think she would care! She, she's Ginny! _ 'Ginny? Guys? Are you ok?' I ask them.

'I'm fine. I just want to know why you are keeping secrets from us.' Harry says indifferently, eating his own food.

'I'm, I'm not keeping secrets from you guys!' I say, not understanding why they don't believe me. _What have I done to make me so, untrustworthy? _

**'Well, for one thing, you are keeping a major secret from them.' **Malik says, butting into my mind. I didn't even realize that my mind was open. I guess that's something else I'm going to have to work on.

**'Actually, you are keeping two major secrets.' **Arsenio jokes.

**'One, you are keeping the fact that you are a Snape, daughter of the infamous Severus Snape.' **Malik begins the list.

**'And two, you've got supernatural powers, one of three of the supernatural triplets!' **Arsenio adds on, not making me feel any better.

**'Thanks guys, that makes me feel so much better.' **I say sarcastically.

**'Ah, no problem Mione.' **Arsenio says mirthfully.

**'But, seriously, why are you so upset?' **Malik asks, sounding concerned.

'Mione? Hello?' Ginny says, rapidly waving her hand in front of my face, snapping me out of my conversation with my brothers.

'W-what?' I say intelligently, but just wanting to go back to my brothers. **'I'll have to tell you later.' **I say to them, shortly after, I pull out. 'Sorry, I was, uh, thinking to myself.' I say.

'Yeah, you seem to be doing that a lot lately.' Ron scoffs, while shoving food down his throat.

'Why, just why? Why are you keeping secrets from us? We are your best friends!' Harry says, getting upset. _Why is he getting upset! He knows more than Ron and Ginny do! _'Harry, I don't understand why you are so mad! You know more than Ron and Ginny do, so shut up before you make things worse!' I scream at him, listening to my voice echo across the silenced Great Hall.

**'Mione! What are you doing! The whole hall is listening! You have to stop! This is getting out of hand!' **Malik weasels into my mind, trying to calm me down.

**'You have to stop! We are getting overwhelming waves of anger from you! You have to stop before you do something we all regret!' **Arsenio pitches in, but I throw them back out.

'You three, come with me, now.' I say, my voice getting deadly quiet. I tightly grip Harry's wrist and Ron's wrist, and forcefully drag them out of the Great Hall, whose eyes were trained on the fighting foursome.

I throw their wrists down forcefully and storm ahead of them. 'Hurry up! This isn't finished yet!' I scream behind me. Sure, there were people staring but who cares about them? 'Eyes to yourself!' I spat at them, glaring them down. I hear the three behind me talking to themselves, but I'm too ticked off at them.

_Why don't they just understand that I can't tell them! They are supposed to be understanding, not agitating! I'm sure they've kept secrets from me before! I don't understand why they are making such a big deal! Why can't they understand that?_

I shout the password to the Fat Lady who moodily lets me in with a scowl on her face. I whip around and shoot my hands for their wrists, constricting their wrists and drag them over to the couch. 'Anything else you want to ask me?' I ask them.

'Umm… yeah. Why are your eyes, not brown?' Ron squeaks, his hand shaking as he points to my face.

That's strikes me out of tirade. _What? My eyes, they're violet! Oh no no no no! This isn't good!_ 'I, um, have to go.' I murmur, making a bolt for the door, but someone catches my wrist.

'No, Hermione, you have to stay, and tell us why the hell you've been acting so strange!' Ginny says, letting go of all of her calm demeanor. Her bright green eyes staring accusingly at me, almost daring me to say something other than the truth.

'I, I can't.' I say weakly, weighing the pros and cons in my head. _I mean, they have already noticed too much, I keep this up from them much longer… _ Overwhelmed, I rip my arm away from her grip and run up the staircase, and away from them, lost in confusion.

**A/N: OMG, I'm so sorry that I haven't updated! There just isn't enough time between swim practice, piano, flute, and marching band! But whatever. Oh! And if I owe you a secret, remind me. =/ I have to do those soon huh?**

**And for people who want in, review and tell me! I'll tell you, almost anything. =) See you later! **

**And, you people are lucky! I gave you one more fight than planned! And stick with me, you'll love the next chapter, I promise! **


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my plot and my OC's. :]**

**A/N: Oh, I know you guys are going to LOVE this chapter. The secret is finally out. MWHAHA! I'll keep it short so you can get to the **_**wonderful **_**drama. **

**So, onward with chapter 26! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 26

_What should I tell them? Should I tell them the truth? Or try and see if I can keep lying? I don't know what to do, and everyone knows I'm a terrible liar! What am I supposed to do?_ I think frustrated to myself.

**'Well telling them the truth isn't an option.' **Malik states tiredly.

**'Oh! I'm sorry; I didn't mean to have my mind open like that.' **I apologize to my tired brothers. **'But, now that you are here, can you help me?'**I ask them hopefully.

**'Sure, I mean, we are already up.' **Arsenio grunts moodily, sounding more sleep deprived than his brother.

**'Ah ignore Arsenio; our headmaster has been keeping him up late at night to keep him up on his studies. He's actually doing that with all of his students, including me. What do you need help with?' **Malik asks, sounding more sympathetic than Arsenio. Thank Merlin for that.

**'Well, I slipped up one time too many in front of them, so there're onto me. That's why I was so upset yesterday. They want to know what's going on.' **I inform them, hoping for some advice.

**'You can't tell them! You never know what could happen. They could accidently tell someone, or someone could infiltrate their minds and get the information out of them that way.' **Arsenio says, listing a bunch of unreasonable possibilities. Well, I guess that he's fully awake now.

**'Arsenio, shut up.' **Malik snaps, noting that his brother wasn't helping. **'Mione, answer me this. Do you trust them?' **Malik asks.

**'What! Of course I do! Why would you ask that?'** I exclaim, dumbfounded that my brother would ask something like that. I mean, they both have met Harry. I would even consider them really close friends by now!

**'Well, if you trust them that much, then, I think you should tell them-' **

** 'What?' **Both Arsenio and I exclaim, shocked not being a good enough word to describe the feeling.

**'Why would you even suggest that! You know the dangers!' **Arsenio says, for once, at disagreement with his brother.

**'Yes, I know the dangers. But, if Hermione feels it necessary, then I think we should support her on this! We don't have to keep this secret from any of our close friends because they already know! So, I think we should trust her, and back her up in this.' **Malik says, being his compassionate self.

**'Yeah, I guess you're right. I mean, this must be terrible for you Mione. We back you up Mia. I mean, it could break whatever friendship we have with him. I think it would be better if you did tell them. Harry at least.' **Arsenio agrees, seeing it Malik's way.

**'Thank you guys. This means a lot to me. So, what should I do?' **I ask them.

**'Well, I think the next thing you should do is go to Father. You probably need to get his permission before you tell them.' **Malik suggests.

**'Alright, I'll go do that. Thanks guys, this really means a lot to me.' **I say, being really grateful for my two amazing brothers.

**'Wait, you're going now? But, it's like, three in the morning.' **Arsenio says, sounding surprised.

**'Yeah. Father always stays up late to grade papers.' **I answer them.

**'And actually, it's two forty in the morning.' **Malik says, being a smart alec. **'Well, I'm going to bed. Mione, if you need any help, you know how to get to us. Otherwise, I'm going to bed.' **He adds. **'Goodnight luv.' **He says, pulling out.

**'Yeah, I'm going to bed as well. Goodnight Mione.' **Arsenio says, pulling out right after his brother.

Once I'm positive that they pulled out, I silently throw my comforter off of me and put my slippers on. I throw my robe on, and double check to make sure that no one in my dormitory is awake. I hear Pavarti snoring quietly, and Lavender rustles softly in her sleep. Ginny doesn't make a sound. _Good, they're all asleep. I guess I should leave now. Better now than never. _I think to myself.

I wrap my robe around my body tighter, and slowly push the portrait door open. Lucky for me, the Fat Lady was sleeping, so I was able to leave without her screaming for Filch. _Crap! Filch! I forgot all about him, and that stupid cat of his! Maybe if I sneak around quietly, that stupid cat won't notice me. _I think to myself again. I creep down the hallway, taking extra precaution to make sure my footsteps don't echo throughout the hallway, but once again, lucky for me, I've always been able to do that. I quicken my pace to a jog, and I round the corner to my father's office.

But my heart suddenly freezes. Staring back at me with giant, amber red eyes was Mrs. Norris, perched on a bench. _Great, now she sees me! What now? _I think sadly to myself, but suddenly, an idea pops up. _Father's office is right there… maybe just this once… no. That isn't like you Hermione. _I scold myself for thinking that. But a smirk over takes my face and I pull out my wand. Pointing at Mrs. Norris, I whisper, 'Wingardium Leviosa!' and watch amusedly as Mrs. Norris begins to soar upward, following my every wand movement. I bounced her up and down, just like Professor Moody did with Draco.

But once I get my full enjoyment out of it, I murmur the counter curse and fling her in the opposite direction, only pausing for a moment to see her hit the ground, before I make a beeline for my father's office. _Wait a minute! What is wrong with you! Last year, you wouldn't have dreamed about doing that to Mrs. Norris! Sure, she's a twit, and pest, and a pain in the arse, but I suppose she didn't deserve that… _I think to myself, stopping dead in my tracks. But I continue on my way to Father's office when I hear Mrs. Norris' angry footsteps speed towards me once again.

Running as quietly and as fast as I can, I make my way to Father's office without any more disruptions from anyone else. Facing his door, I knock quietly. The rustling inside died down.

'Who's there?' His bored voice drawls out.

'It's Hermione, can you let me in?' I ask almost silently.

I hear his relieved sigh through the door. He opens his thick wooden door to let me in. 'Hello Mia, what brings you to my office at three in the morning?' he jokes, sitting back down on his desk.

'Well, actually, I have two questions, one, why in the world are you up at three in the morning? I mean, I know that you always stay up really late, but why?' I ask laughing.

'Grading mainly. It would take you several hours too if you wanted to grade first year essays. And, I always stay up late. I function on three hours of sleep. Now, your other question?' he props me, guessing that my next question is the real reason why I'm here.

'Well,' I draw out, trying to think about the best way to phrase this. 'It's about the secret.' I start off hoping that this is the best way begin this. His eye brow rises slightly, but he remains silent, allowing me to continue. 'I want to tell my friends.' I blurt out, cowering over, fearing what Father might do.

The silence knags away at my ears, as I wait for him to say something, but for several moments, there is nothing but that same silence. 'Father?' I ask, opening one eye slightly, just to make sure that he isn't on a rampage.

'Which friends?' he asks, keeping his cool.

'Just Harry, Ron, and Ginny!' I answer, eager that he actually might let me.

Zoning out, it seems as if he's thinking about my request once more. _Ok, while he does that, I can come up with my reasons. One, it's vital to keep the friendship alive. Two, the longer I keep this up, the more likely I am to lose control of my emotions, and reveal another secret. Three, it is also vital for everyone else's safety as well. If I lose control, then that put everyone else in danger. That seems good enough, I hope. Good thing I'm persuasive. _'Father?' I try again, hoping to gain his attention.

'Mione, no.' He answers quietly and curtly.

Even though I was expecting that answer, it still knocks the wind out of me. 'Can't you at least hear me out?' I beg him.

'No, this isn't a good idea.' He says, suddenly tired. 'You know what could happen if the information were to get out, not to mention what could happen to your friends.'

'Yes, I know, I had this argument with my brothers-'

'See? I know that neither Malik nor Arsenio would let you do this. They know the consequences as well. They actually might know them better than you do.' Father says, thinking that this conversation is over.

'Actually, both Arsenio and I agree Father.'

Taken by surprise, I whip around to find my brothers at the entrance of the door, both dressed in identical white tank tops and gray sweats. They were also wearing identical smirks on their face. 'We both agree with Mione. We completely backed her up on this.' Malik says, walking in while Arsenio closes the door behind him.

'What? You do? Why?' Father said, baffled that Malik and Arsenio, his level headed sons, would agree with this.

'A better question is how did you know that I needed back up?' I ask, turning to face them.

'We could feel wave after wave of frustration emitting from you. So we thought that you might need help. And clearly, you did.' Arsenio said, laughing. But then his face masks over in his serious expression again. 'But Father, seriously. I think you should let her tell them.'

'Why?' Father says, raising his eyebrow up further, till where it was almost hidden in his hair.

'Well first off, we've both met Harry. He's a pretty awesome bloke.' Arsenio begins.

'And he's in as much danger as we are. Actually, he's in more danger because he's the one that vanquished Voldemort in the first place, and because nobody knows that we are related.' Malik backs his brother up. 'And we can feel each other's emotions, and every time that she gets in a fight with her friends, we can feel it! And she's actually almost lost her cool before. If she loses her cool in front of the school, then she won't have a choice.' Malik says, being his intelligent self.

'You can't risk the safety of Mione, or the other students. Besides, we can make them promise under the unbreakable vow. Then they won't have a choice but to keep their mouth shut.' Arsenio says, being _his _intelligent self. Wow, I'm lucky to have such intelligent brothers. _I guess both Mother and Father were intelligent._

'Arsenio, you're a genius!' I exclaim, running over and engulfing him in a hug. 'See Father? I can tell them. All I have to do is make them promise under the vow!'

'But Hermione, you know what could happen, we went over this.' Father says weakly, noting that he's fighting a losing battle right now.

'I know Father. But you also know that Harry goes through the same thing every day. I know I can trust them.' I say, pleading with him.

'But what if something happens? What if they don't take it well at all, and completely ignore you? If you're anything like your mother, that won't go over well at all.' Father says, hoping that his last argument will work.

'And if something goes wrong, there's nothing a little Obliviate can't fix.' Malik speaks up, making an excellent point.

Father sighs loudly, knowing that he's lost. 'Alright Mia, you can tell them. But under two conditions. One, you must make them promise under the vow. Two, I want your brothers there, just in case something terrible happens.' He says, listing his reasons.

'Thank you thank you thank you!' I scream overjoyed. I run over to him and engulf him in a hug. 'I promise you won't regret this!' I say, smiling radiantly.

'Calm down Mia.' Father says, rolling his eyes amusedly at me.

'Ok, calm. If I'm going to tell them, I have to be serious. They won't take me seriously if I'm not serious.' I say, breathing deeply, trying to control my racing heart. 'Should we go now?' I ask, turning to my brothers.

'Sure, let's go. Goodnight Father.' Arsenio says with Malik's echo right behind him.

'Goodnight Father and thank you!' I say, hugging him one more time.

'You're welcome Mia. Just be careful.' He says, hugging me back before letting me go. I let go first, and leave, with my brothers' right behind me.

'So, how are we going to tell them?' Arsenio asks rather loudly.

**'Sh! We have to be quiet! Mrs. Norris is after me. And besides, we're not supposed to be up this late anyway!' **I tell them mentally, while peaking around a corner.

**'Sorry. And why is Mrs. Norris after you?' **Arsenio asks.

**'And who is Mrs. Norris anyway?' **Malik asks curiously.

**'She's the most hated cat in the school. She's Filch's cat. She patrols the hallways at night, and reports anyone she finds. So I kinda hexed her to the other side of the castle.' **I say, snickering at what I did, surprised that I actually did that.

**'Wow Mione.' **Malik says, stifling a laugh.

**'Wait; is this the Gryffindor common room?' **Arsenio asks, pointing to portrait hole, with the painting of the Fat Lady snoring covering it up.

'Courage is within.' I whisper to the portrait, which opens up without a sound. We tip toe in and I stop them in front of the couches. **'Ok, you guys go get Harry and Ron. I'll get Ginny. Oh, Harry and Ron are four flights up, second door on your right.' **I tell them before I head up the stairs to my dorm that I shared with Ginny.

Once I'm up three flights, I hang a right and enter my own dormitory, despite the fact that I could hear my brothers talking in my mind, giving me a headache. Ginny, Pavarti, and Lavender were all sound asleep in their own beds. I snap my fingers, just to double check that they are all asleep. Once I'm positive that they are asleep, I tip toe over to Ginny's bed, and begin to shake her. 'Ginny, Ginny! Wake up!' I whisper harshly.

'W-what? M-Mione? Is that you?' Ginny asks weakly. She sits up and stretches to get a better look at me. 'What's wrong?'

'Nothing, I just need you to come down to the common room. There is something really, really important I need to tell you.' I say, desperate for her to just hear me out.

'Why can't you do that in here?' she asked, exasperated. She throws her pillow over her ears for emphasis.

'Because, I have to tell Harry and Ron too. This is really, really important.' I plea with her.

'Urgh, fine. But you owe me nine hours of sleep.' She says sarcastically. She slips out of bed and throws her slippers on and follows me down the stairs.

**ARSENIO'S POV**

** 'Argh! How many more flights do we have to go?' **I exclaim.

**'Mate, we're there.' **Malik snickers silently at me.

I roll my eyes at him, and open the door that leads into the dormitory. My eyes scan over the dark dorm and notice that there are four beds, lined inn a circle. I didn't recognize anyone in the dorm besides Harry and the red-head. Harry was on the opposite side of the dorm, and his red-headed friend was next to him.

** 'I'll take Harry!' **Malik says, interrupting my train of thought.

**'Fine. I'll take his snoring friend.' **I say, ticked off. I walk over to the red-head's bed and begin to shake him. 'Red-head, hey, Ron! Wake up!' I whisper, loud enough to wake him, but quiet enough so that no one else can hear me. I can hear Malik do the same thing to Harry.

'G-go away…' Ron moans, shoving me over.

'Ron, wake up!' I whisper more harshly. I begin shaking him harder and harder, but nothing works. **'Malik! I need help! This lazy sack won't budge!' **I say to my brother, who successfully got Harry up.

**'I'm coming, hold on.' **Malik replies back. He helps Harry up and the both of them walk over to Ron's bed.

'I got this.' Harry says, stepping in front of me. He grabs Ron's shoulders and shoves him off his own bed, causing him to land ungracefully on the floor, sprawled out like a fish out of water.

'What the bloody hel-' I quickly rush over to Ron and cover his mouth with my hand, and punch him in the neck, effectively cutting off his sound.

'Shut up! I just need you to come with us. Hermione has something really important to tell you.' I tell him.

'Wait a moment, why the hell are the two of you in here?' Ron asks bewildered.

'I just told you. Hermione has something really important to tell you, and you need to common room, now.' I tell him, grabbing his wrist and yanking him upward. 'Come on, we need to leave before your dorm mates wake up!'

Ron glares at me, but silently agrees to follow us. Malik and I lead the two of them back down the four flights of stairs back down to the common room, where I saw Mione waiting impatiently with her red-headed friend. _Hm, no wonder I felt waves of impatience coming from her. _

_**'**_**Good Luck Mione, there's no turning back now.' **I tell her silently.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

** 'Good Luck Mione, there's no turning back now.' **I hear Arsenio try and comfort me, but I can barely hear either of them over the sound of my rushing heartbeat. _Where in the world am I even supposed to start? You can't just go from muggleborn Granger to pureblood Snape! It just doesn't happen like that!_

**'It does to you.' **Arsenio jokes, trying to cheer me up, but I completely ignore him.

'So, can you tell us why you dragged us down here at three in the morning?' Ron asks, his mood worsening with each passing minute.

'And can you tell us why the hell the Snape twins are in here?' Ginny asks, eyeing Arsenio with distaste.

'Yeah, I was wondering why one was staring at me when I woke up.' Ron said, also taking up eyeing Arsenio with distaste. 'I would like to know how they got in here as well.'

Both Ron and Ginny were eyeing by brothers with utmost dislike. Harry sat awkwardly in between them, staring at the floor. **'Hey, I can use some help lightening the mood here!' **I ask of my brothers, hoping that their goofy personalities would kick in soon. I can't tell them with this dense, impatient, ticked off atmosphere.

'You know, I heard the music industry is finally fighting illegal downloads.' Arsenio murmurs, looking up to see if his attempt at a joke lightened the moods of the people we dragged out of bed.

Ron looked up from his slumped over to give my brother a weird look. 'What? What are illegal downloads?' Ron asks curiously, forgetting to sound impatient and tired.

**'He doesn't know what illegal downloads are?' **Arsenio asks, worried that his joke didn't work.

**'He's a pureblood, he doesn't know about these things.' **I respond, getting more and more anxious than I was before.

**'We are pureblood, kinda. And we know about these things.' **Malik says.

**'Yeah, well we have a muggleborn Mother. She would know about these things. The Weasley's are one of the longest lines of pureblooded families. And besides, we aren't like the Weasley's or the Malfoy's. We aren't entirely pureblood. We're more like, three fourths pureblood.' **I correct them, trying to help them out.

'Hello? Hello?' Harry says, drawling out his hellos, trying to regain my attention by waving his hand in front of my face. 

'What?' I say, being snapped out of my conversation with my brothers.

'You zoned out.' Harry says, leaning back down on the couch. 'Now can you please tell us why you brought us down here at three in the morning?' he asks.

'Actually, I would like to know what illegal downloads are. Does that have something to do with that net on those funny looking teley-visions?' Ron asks, beginning to sound a lot like his Father.

'Ron, just send dad a letter and ask him. Right now, I just want to know why Mione woke me up in the middle of the night. This better be important.' Ginny says, losing her own saint like patience.

The atmosphere turned serious again. _So much for trying to lighten the atmosphere. I guess it's better this way. I mean, this is nothing to joke about. It's all serious business. _'Right, ok. But, before I tell you, I need you all to promise not to tell anyone.' I begin, looking them all dead in the eye.

'We promise.' They all chorus together.

'Um, no. You all need to promise under the unbreakable vow.' Arsenio interrupts.

'There are lives at stake, and they are all depending on this secret staying a secret.' Malik adds on, helping me, noting that everyone else develops a very concerned look on their face.

Malik pulls his wand out of his cloak and wait for at least one of them to extend their right arm. Ginny raises her arm, although hesitant. I lock my hand with hers, and wait for my brother to begin casting the spell. **'Her full name is Ginevera Molly Weasley.' **I tell my brother before he performs the spell.

He raises his wand, and points it at our locked wrists. He begins muttering the spell. Once he finishes, he begins the incantation. 'Ginevera Molly Weasley, after the secret is spoken, do you promise to not tell a soul about what you are about to hear?' he asks seriously.

'I do.' She mutters.

Malik finishes the spell. Ginny lets go and Harry extends his arm to me and grabs my hand, interlocking our hands. **'His full name is Harry James Potter' **I tell Arsenio, who decided to take the next one.

'Harry James Potter, after the secret is spoken, do you promise to not tell a soul about what you are about to hear?' Arsenio echoes his brother's incantation.

'I do.' Harry murmurs back.

Arsenio finishes up his spell, and last to go is Ron, who is still pouting in his seat on the couch. I reach my hand out to him, waiting anxiously for him to take it. After staring it down for a couple of moments, he reaches out and takes my hand in his. Malik begins the spell. **'His full name is Ronald Billius Weasley.' **

** '**Ronald BilliusWeasley, after the secret is spoken, do you promise to not tell a soul about what you are about to hear?' Malik asks seriously.

'I do.' Ron agrees, although he said it moodily.

Malik finishes up the spell, and puts his wand by his side. 'You guys are now under the unbreakable vow. Once this secret is out, you are not allowed to tell anybody.' Malik says seriously. Harry, Ginny, and Ron nod, probably noticing that there is not a single ounce of foolhardy pranks present.

'Mate, what's going on here? You're really starting to freak me out.' Ron asks. His face molds over in thought and confusion before he speaks again. 'Wait a minute, how in the world did the two of you know our full names? We never told you.' He asks suspicious.

'I told them.' I told him, feeling the atmosphere decline.

'How did you tell them? You never spoke a word to them-'

'Yes, I know that, but if you let me explain, you would get it-'

'Ok stop!' Malik says, stopping everyone's flow of words. 'Harry, Ron, Ginny, let Hermione explain. If you all shut up, you will get everything whether you like what she's about to say or not!' he whispers harshly.

Arsenio took his wand back out cast a series of charms around the six of us. **'There. Now we can speak as loud as we want to. If anyone were to come in here, all they would see would be an empty common room. So, if you're gonna tell them, you better say it now. It's almost four o' clock.' **Arsenio informs me.

**'Thanks.' **I silently thank him. 'Guys, please, be quiet. I'll tell you.' I start out again, my eyes finding the floor.

'Ok, sorry. We're just, freaked out right now. We don't know what this is about, and it seems like a huge deal for you.' Harry says, yawning.

With one last desperate look at my brothers, I face my friends and look them all dead in the eye. 'Harry, Ron, Ginny, I'm not who you think I am. I'm not Hermione Jean Granger, the muggleborn, but I am Hermione Kyla Snape, a pureblood, and the youngest daughter of Severus Snape.'

**A/N: Oh how evil am I? I left you at a cliffhanger. =] Evil… I know you all hate me right now. Sorry! :] **

**Oh, and you're gonna hate me even more when I say these two things. One, I might not be able to write as much due to marching band rehearsal and flute sectionals. Two, I made this chapter short on purpose. But I promise I'll make it up to you in the next chapter. You just might have to… wait a while. Sorry… **


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: Aright, I don't own anything but my OC's, and my original plot, the one that isn't mentioned in my disclaimer list on my page. Please check that out! It's a full list of things that belong to another better author. :]**

**A/n: Hm, I really ticked a nerve last chapter, leaving you off at your first real cliffhanger huh? That, the last chapter, gave me one of the highest review counts ever. Maybe I should do that more often?**

**Putting in enough emotion in these emotionally charged chapters is harder than it may seem, so, if you have any ideas as to how to make the emotion scenes more, well, emotionally, I'm all eyes. (I would say ears, but I can't exactly hear you) Just, nothing to rough, ok? I'm still a beginner writer. But, at least I know I'm doing a half decent job, am I right? :] I want to know, have I made you feel any emotion? Have I? Huh, huh? **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 27

'Harry, Ron, Ginny, I'm not who you think I am. I'm not Hermione Jean Granger, the muggleborn, but I am Hermione Kyla Snape, a pureblood, and the youngest daughter of Severus Snape.' I say confidently, making eye contact with every single one of them, scanning their faces for any sign of disbelief. But I find none.

The silence echoes throughout the common room. Their glazes all puncture me like needles, but there weren't any signs of anger like I thought there would be.

**'Why aren't they saying anything?' **I ask worriedly to my brothers, who were staring back at the three sitting across from us, as if they too were waiting for something to happen, or at least waiting for a change in emotion on the three faces.

Malik turns to me, with the same worried expression on his face. **'I'm not sure. I mean, at least by now they should be out of that state of shock.' **

** 'Well why don't they accept this?' **I ask them. **'What do you think?' **I ask them, wanting to know what they think.

**'Well, do you want me to act like you, or be totally honest?' **Arsenio asks me in a joking manner.

**'What, are you calling me a liar?' **I ask, noting his joking manner, and shrug it off.

**'Of course not! I'm calling you an optimist, but, it's pretty much the same thing.' **Arsenio laughs, but before either one of us could say anything else, Malik cuts us off. 

**'Hold on… let me try something.' **Malik says. He leans over and snaps his fingers in front of Harry's face. 'Harry, Harry? Hello?' he draws out the hello, trying to grab his attention. Harry's head jerks backwards, snapping back into reality.

But he doesn't say anything. His pupils just dilate back to the form they were just in a moment ago, his mouth returning to the same slightly open state. Malik rolls his eyes and relaxes back to his original position, his head resting on top of his hands. **'So much for that.' **He mutters to us sounding slightly amused, but agitation and frustration shone through the brightest.

'Harry?' I question without a response. 'Ron?' I question him, with silencing answering me. 'Ginny?' I question one last time, with that same echoing silence that answered me before. Why isn't this working, at least, as well as I hoped it would? But, I guess it was too much to hope that they would accept this without question. Now that I think about it, it seemed really childish to hope for that in the first place anyway.

Finally, Harry's face breaks from its dazed look it had, but the facial expression wasn't something I prepared myself for. It wasn't anger, confusion, disbelief, or shock like before, but Harry's face was contorted in laughter, with Ron's facial expression soon mirroring his. Ginny remained impassive.

I look helplessly at my brothers, but they look just as confused as I probably do. **'Out of all the things I was expecting, laughter wasn't one of them.' **I tell them.

**'Yeah I know. I was preparing myself for some kind of explosion, but not this kind of explosion. I was expecting an explosion of anger, not laughter.' **Arsenio says, trying but failing to crack a joke.

**'I guess they didn't take you seriously. You should say something to them. I think they took this as a joke.' **Malik says more seriously.

'Harry, Ron? What's so funny?' I ask uncertainly.

Harry is the first to calm himself down enough to answer me. 'Well, one of the funny things is, you dragged us down here at three forty something in the morning to joke with us?' he answers.

'No offense, but couldn't you wait till morning to joke with us? I mean, don't we have that huge exam in potions tomorrow? I'd rather not have Snape's greasy hands slap me across the face, and I would rather not have to deal with him in detention either. You know how awful and cruel that man could be.' Ron says, assuming that his joke was harmless. To Harry, it was harmless. Both Harry and Ron doubled over in another fit of laughter. But to my brothers, it was one step closer to over the edge.

'Say that again.' Arsenio demands, towering over Ron, who had the most confused look on his face.

'What? I just don't want to be all greased up by that slimy git. I'd rather not have to deal with his odor in detention with him.' Ron says, not realizing that he is only making his situation worse for himself.

'Say. That. To. My. Face.' Arsenio punctuated each word harshly, and Malik isn't doing anything to stop him. If anything, Malik is mirroring Arsenio's posture. And I can tell by the emotions I'm getting from them, they are not happy people right now, if anything, they are immensely ticked off at the three people sitting before them.

'Mate, calm down. We're just insulting the worst professor in the school.' Harry says, further digging his grave. 'I mean, it's nothing new. Everyone but those snakes hates Snape.'

**'Calm down, please!' **I plead with my brothers, turning to face them, and realizing what is wrong with them.

**'Why the hell should I do that? They're insulting Father right in front of our faces!' **Arsenio spats, glaring down at Harry and Ron. Ginny remains quiet.

**'Because your eyes are bright gold, even in this dark room!' **I shout to them, causing them to physically cringe.

Malik and Arsenio sit back down, breathing deeply, trying to control themselves, which is very strange to me, because they are the most collected people I know, maybe besides the other Slytherins. So when I see my brothers or any of the other Slytherins, like Theo or Draco lose control of their emotions, it's something very surreal. And come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen Blaise lose it at all.

'Mione, you were joking right?' Harry asks, after Ron and my brothers have calmed down.

'Joking?' I question quietly, forgetting why I brought them down here in the first place, and I kinda also wanted to hear her say it.

'That, that you were the daughter of Snape.' He clarifies.

Ron burst into laughter again. 'It's funnier the second time!' Ron snorts between laughter.

'Yeah right! Hermione, daughter of Snape! First off she doesn't even have that hooked nose of his, and she doesn't have that rotten, greasy hair of his either!' Harry adds on, cracking up even more. 'Mione has this bushy brown hair that she actually washes. That slime bag probably doesn't know what a shower is! I mean come on, if you're gonna crack a joke; you could at least make it slightly believable. ' Harry adds on, snorting

'I'm not joking.' I cut in. That silences them.

But for some reason, that only fuels the laughter I just cut off. 'H-Hermione! S-stop! I, I can'-t breathe!' Ron stammers, clutching his side.

**'The lack of oxygen must explain why he can't understand you.' **Malik says, trying to come to reason as to why Ron is acting so weird. To them, sure, Ron's weird, but to me, this is everyday Ron attitude, stubborn with a hint of annoyance to everyone else.

**'They should know you well enough. You don't joke around.' **Arsenio says. I shoot him a look that says, "Really? I'm funny." **'Well, at least not all the time.' **Arsenio says, covering up his mistake that he realized he made.

'Mione?' Harry says, waving his hand in front of my face. I snap back to her attention. 'The three of you were making really weird faces at each other. You've actually been doing it a while now.' he says, eyeing us.

'Well if you would give her a chance to explain, everything would make perfect sense. So, if you don't mind, shut the hell up and let my sister talk!' Malik booms, glowering over Harry and Ron, who were still laughing.

But not for long. After Malik yelled at them for the third something time, they shut up.

'Your sister?' Ron yells, suddenly losing that entire light and cheerful atmosphere that surrounded him before. 'Ok guys, it was funny the first two times, but it's not funny anymore.' He says, slightly more calm.

'Yeah, it wouldn't be funny if you actually took her seriously the first two times.' Arsenio snaps, losing his patience real fast with the stubborn attitude of my friends.

'Serious facts aren't something to laugh at.' Malik says, keeping well control of his waning patience. They must really be agitated, because they never lose their patience. Ever.

Harry and Ron's faces harden even more. Ginny's remains impassive. 'Stop, this isn't funny anymore. Mione, are you joking or not?' he asks, turning to me.

I sigh deeply, and stare at him straight in the eye. 'No, Ron. I'm not joking. I am truly and honestly, a Snape. I can prove it.' I say. 'Take your wand out and show them.' I say to either one of my brothers.

Malik takes his out. I close my eyes, as he murmurs the incantation, and my concealer was taken off. My normal bushy brown hair turned raven, and flowed down my back. My body slimed down just a tad, and I got a slight bit taller. I opened my eyes and stared straight at them, with my bright, violet eyes.

They cower backwards, gaping at my real appearance. Ginny finally looks up, and her eyes widen once more, her eyes locked on my appearance. 'I am not joking. I am Hermione Kyla Snape, the daughter of Severus Snape. These are my twin brothers, and together, we are triplets. We have an older sister named Ara.' I say, knowing that I have their equal, undivided and unwavering attention.

I hear Malik take a breath in, as if he's about to say something, but I cut him off. **'Shh, I think it's better if I tell them everything.' **I say, cutting him off. He huffs in disappointment, but stays quiet. 'Together, the three of us make the Supernatural Triplets. We were born with special powers, and the ability to talk to each other without muttering a word, through mental telepathy. We can also feel what the other two are feeling, as if we are one. Arsenio was gifted with fighting, Malik was gifted with healing, and I was gifted with the power to bend the earth's elements. That's always where I disappear off to. Here, I'll show you two out of three powers.' I say. I notice the cup of water on the coffee table in front of us. I focus, and then bend the water out of the cup, moving it effortlessly through the air. I then freeze it solid, and cut my arm clean open. Cringing in pain, I gasp, and clutch my bleeding arm.

Eyes suddenly glowing bright gold, Malik rushes to my aid, covering my wound with hand. He closes his eyes, and I feel the wound on my arm stitch up. He releases his hand, and reveals no evidence that a cut was ever there, not a scar, not a scab, nothing. Malik's eyes return back to normal.

'Now, I know that you don't have much of a choice, but you can't hint anything about this. This conversation never happened to everyone else, ok?' I ask of them.

They say nothing. The silence ebbs away at my ears, and it's driving me crazy, but I remain quiet, knowing that this should be really hard for them to absorb. But finally, Harry is the first to move. As much as I hope for a bright smile on his face, his expression is tightly squeezed shut, his eyes nothing more than narrow slits.

'Traitor.' Harry hisses quietly, his eyes tightly squeezed shut.

My heart begins to sink, feeling that this whole situation is about to take a one hundred eighty degree turn for the worse. 'I, I beg your pardon?' I ask meekly.

'Traitor!' Harry explodes, jerking upward, his normal friendly green eyes glaring down at me, with absolute rage. Ron stands up just as angrily, if not more so. 'I, I don't understand how you could have kept this from us! Why would you do such a thing?' he asks angrily.

Speechless, my mouth hangs loosely in place, unable to think of anything to say or excuse this. And maybe the reason I can't, is because I know deep down inside, I did nothing wrong. But it doesn't matter if I can come up with anything or not, Ron beats me to it. 'How long?' he asks curtly, his eyes boring into mine, cutting through my focus.

'I, I beg your pardon?' I mutter, my mind fogged up and unable to think straight.

'How long have you known about this?' Ron asks again louder, gesturing to me and my brothers, loosing every last bit of patience that he has left in his body, and let me tell you something you already know, there wasn't that much patience to start with.

I understand his question now. 'Ok, do remember that day during the summer, when Professor Snape came to get me? He said he wanted to tell me something?' I ask quietly. They nod, but don't say anything, letting me continue. 'I've known since then. That's the day he told me.' I answer, my voice beginning to waver.

'So why didn't you tell us? We're your best friends!' Ron questions me further, his voice rising in misunderstanding and hurt. 'I thought we would always be like that.' He murmurs again.

'Because she knew you morons would react like this when she told you!' Malik explodes, standing to, towering over Harry and Ron by at least a couple of inches. 'The reason she kept it from you is because she wanted to keep your friendship the same!' he screams to them, coming to my defense, which is what I so desperately needed.

'And besides, we had to keep all the other families safe.' Arsenio said. 'She put all those families back in danger because she knew how badly you wanted to know this, how much this was weighing on her.' He added logically.

'Oh, and what families would those be?' Harry spat, finding his voice again, sending his white hot gaze straight at me.

'The Malfoy's, the Nott's, the Parkinson's, the Zabini's,-' Malik began listing, but Ron cut him off yet again.

'Oh, so _now _you're all buddy buddy with the Slytherins? So you kept this from us so you could protect Malfoy's arse? How dare you!' Ron screams his flaring temper raising more.

'Wait a minute, they knew before you told us?' Harry asks almost silently, his voice cracking. His bright green eyes shine in hurt and betrayal. And what's worse, I know exactly why he's feeling that way. Having your best friend tell the enemy her biggest secret before him, he must be heart broken.

'Harry, I'm so sorry, I would have-' I begin to apologize, feeling my eyes begin to water, but he cuts me off.

'No you're not.' He whispers, his voice sounding hollow, deprived of all emotion. 'The Hermione I know would have immediately come to us and you would have told us everything, but instead you wait till almost a whole year later? It's like I don't even know you anymore.' He says, his voice now indifferent, and it snapped my heart in half.

'Harry, I would have told you, but I couldn't! Father made me promise-'

'Father! _Father?_' Ron sneers, mocking me. 'So now that slimy haired git is _Father? _So we mean nothing to you now. You have _Father _and the _Slytherins _to go to now.' Ron says disgustedly.

**'P-please don't say anything.' **I quietly say to my brothers, feeling them tense up, they were just about to open their mouths, but I think it's best if they just keep quiet.

**'Mione! They're mocking your father! How can you just sit here and do nothing?' **Arsenio questions me wildly, but Malik cuts in.

**'Ars, we should just keep quiet.' **Malik says, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder. I hear Arsenio huff loudly, but he too keeps quiet. **'I mean, she does know what she is doing.' **

'And just think Harry, she's probably been feeding all sorts of information to Snape. Everything! That's probably how Snape figured out about Sirius last year!' Ron rants, hitting a whole new topic. Betrayal. 'Practically everyone knows that the Slytherins are death eaters. She's probably been telling every single one of those snakes everything about you!' Ron says, only upsetting me even further.

'Ron, I can't believe you would accuse me of doing that to Harry,' I trail off, knowing in full that he is going to cut me off anyway.

'_Accuse, _oh, I'm sorry Miss. _Snape! _You _disgust _me.' Ron hisses, glaring white hot daggers at me. 'I can't believe you would do this to us! We've been there for you, and this is how you treat us? You would have saved us all a lot of trouble if you just left the truth alone. No one said that you had to and become this person!' Ron says, striking the very last nerve.

I close my eyes tightly, knowing perfectly well what's about to come, but Malik and Arsenio loose it. Golden eyed, Arsenio leaps over the coffee table and grabs Ron by the wrist, throwing him over the couch, pinning him to the floor. 'Say that again to my sister, and your fellow Gryffindors will have to mop your insides off this very spot!' he screams angrily at Ron, harshly pinning his neck to the floor, with a feebly struggling Ron underneath his hand. 

Malik's eyes turn bright golden as well. He brings his hands up and stresses them. Harry begins to twitch. I turn and looks horrified at the sight before me. Malik jerks his hands towards him, and Harry comes flying into his grip. Harry abruptly stops right in front of his hand, hovering a couple centimeters off the ground, twitching silently in pain. But Malik doesn't say anything. His golden eyes pierce right through his terrified green ones, controlling his every movement, with the power radiating from his golden eyes.

Unbearable amounts of anger come flying into my mind from my brothers, but I can barely focus anymore. The emotions are becoming unbearable. Trying to channel the emotions from me and my twin brothers is too much for me to handle. I clench my fists, trying desperately to keep myself from losing control.

'You think she wanted all if this to happen? How in the world do you think you are making her feel right now?' Arsenio screams at Ron, who is weakly clawing at Arsenio's hand, trying to get the precious oxygen his body so desperately craves. 'But you know, what about on the other hand? Obviously you aren't deep enough to even feel a smidge of happiness for my father, or even for us! She was _ripped away from us_ by Voldemort. My own sister, a part of both me and Malik, was ripped away with the snap of his pale white fingers. How do you think we feel to finally have her back where she belongs?' Arsenio screams, tears leaking out of his own eyes. 'And you know, maybe they're right. Gingers have no souls.' Arsenio spats. 'Because maybe if you did have one, you wouldn't feel the anger that is taking you over right now.' Arsenio whispers harshly into Ron's ear. He lifts Ron up, and throws him back onto the couch, leaving him gasping for breath. 'You failed to think through, that maybe she's happy where she is, that's she happy to finally be back where she belongs.

'Y-you're w-wrong.' Ron mutters, gasping for breath, on his hands and knees. 'S-she w-will never b-be happy w-with you, n-not as long as s-she related t-to you.'

That statement sets both my brothers over the cliff, and into the abyss of fire hot hatred. Unbelievable amounts of pure hatred, anger, and power came flooding through my mind. Malik's golden glare grew stronger, his eyes waning narrower. Arsenio's eyes reduced to nothing but narrow slits, set a lock on glare at Ron. If Malik wasn't too busy holding onto Harry with his invisible constricting grip, he too would have lunged straight for Ron. But Arsenio on the other hand, wasn't busy at all. His golden eyes began to shine even brighter than before. He lunged over the couch, and took Ron by the throat again. '_How dare you?' _he screams, rising Ron above his knees, grabbing onto him with one hand, his other hand balled tightly into a fist, ready to strike. '_Who are you to say whether or not if she's happy? _You, unlike us, are _not _related to her, you don't know her like we do. She's a _part _ of us! You are nothing like her!' he screams at him, his luminous golden eyes sparkling with unreleased tears of unimaginable sorrow and anger mixed into one powerful glare, aimed straight at Ron, who looked up at him with that terrified expression he wears so well. 'You will _never _understand her the way we do, _never! ' _he rages, screaming at Ron, tears pouring down his face through the narrow slits of his eyes. He raises Ron higher, his fist pumped backwards, poised to strike. The powerful muscles rippled powerfully in his arm, as he slowly draws his arm back further and further.

**'Arsenio, stop, please…' **I beg, not wanting him to do anything he would regret, knowing him well enough that he might regret it in the morning, depending on how much he truly loathed the man he held up. His eyes jerk towards me, as his furious eyes lock onto mine. His eyes soften, and he sighs, closing his eyes, and releases his grip on Ron, letting him tumble to the floor once more.

'You're lucky Mione cares so much about you.' He spats and Ron's convulsing figure on the floor, smirking at Ron's panting figure on the floor with twisted pleasure.

'And you.' Malik says, taking his brother's place. He locks gazes with Harry, gold on green, calm on pain. 'She didn't have a choice! Everything was placed on her shoulders, and it was too much for her! As brilliant as she is, she needs time to get used to her new life. Why can't you understand that you are only making it that much worse for her?' he asks, more calm than how is brother handled Ron, even though Harry was still twitching in pain, but the anger in his voice was more than evident as his voice raises louder and louder. 'Why can't any of you understand that?' he questions the other two, Ron, who was still panting, and to Ginny, who still hasn't said a word. 'If you stop ranting for just one second, maybe you would realize that she would have told you if she could have.' He yells, releasing his invisible grip on Harry, letting him crumble to the floor, glaring at Harry's convulsing figure on the ground with the same kind of sick, twisted pleasure as his brother.

Panting heavily, Arsenio's eyes return back to normal, followed quickly by Malik's eyes. I open mind, revealing bright violet eyes. Malik walks over to me, and puts a hand on my shoulder. 'At least you didn't lose control.' He says. I nod slowly, my pupils dilating further. _Why, why did they respond so badly?_

'You know, I'm leaving.' Harry says suddenly, standing up, avoiding all eye contact with anyone in the room.

'What, why?' I ask frantically, rushing over to him, but he immediately bolts out of my reach, cowering from my touch.

'Don't touch me.' He murmurs, holding his hands out in front of him. 'I'm done with this.' He says in a tone of finality. Without another word, he bolts up the staircase, and disappearing into the boy's dormitories, and out of sight.

I turn hopelessly to the remaining two friends in the room, one who was still venting, and the other who remained quiet throughout the whole scene. 'Ron?' I ask meekly.

'Don't talk to me!' he spats at me. 'Just go talk to _Father, _or _Draco. _I'm done talking to you.' He says, all anger in his voice finally evaporates. 'You know, I really did trust you.' He mutters, the true emotion shining through his eyes, true and utter hurt. Without another glance at me, he too turns and walks towards the boy's dormitories, and disappears out of sight.

'Ginny?' I whisper, my voice cracking. For the first time since I've spoken the truth, she looks up from her keen focus on the floor beneath her. I saw her look up at me, and my hope began to rise, but my glimmer of hope was shattered the moment I locked eyes with her. Her normal bright green eyes were dull and glosses over. She had been crying. The reflection of her eyes revealed nothing but the emotion that I saw before, pure hurt. 'Ginny…' I murmur again, walking over towards her. Her eyes widen, and she jumps up, faster than any amount of electric voltage could bring her up. She bolts out of the common room without another glance back, leaving me alone with my brothers.

Finally, the overpowering emotion is too much for me to bear anymore. I fall to my knees, and begin crying. I feel my brothers rush over to me, and try their best to comfort me. 'We tried Mia.' Malik murmurs into my ear, as he begins to rub my back in aimless circles.

'B-but, they hate me!' I sob, turning towards one of my brothers' shoulders. 'A-and it's n-not e-even my fault! T-they're acting a-as if I c-couldn't c-choose my family!' I sob even harder.

'Well you know, if they really care about you, then they will be begging on their knees by morning. My guess is that it's just the shock that got the best of them. They should realize by tomorrow that nothing is your fault. I mean, it's just like you said, they're acting as if you chose for this to happen.' Malik says comfortingly.

'Well you know,' I say, gathering my emotions back under control. 'I'm glad that I have you guys now.' I say, hugging Malik tightly, thankful that I have my brothers there to comfort me, knowing that no one else will, considering that the only people I go to for comfort hate my very presence right now.

'Oh Mia, and you know, your eyes are glowing golden right now right?' Arsenio asks, holding his arms out for his hug, which I graciously crawl into.

'Oh, I'm perfectly aware. Can you guys turn me back?' I ask, just wanting to forget this night right now.' I say. Arsenio takes his wand out, and murmurs the charm, turning me back to bushy haired Hermione. 'Thanks.' I say, trying to brush my untamed hair down.

'So, are you gonna be ok? For the rest of night?' Malik asks concerned, knowing right now isn't the optimal moment to leave me alone with my sinking thoughts.

'Well, what's left of it.' Arsenio jokes, causing me to laugh for the first time since I've spoken the truth to my angered friends.

'Yeah, I'll be fine. But, if I do happen to feel even more depressed than I do right now, I know where to find you.' I say, standing up with the help of my brothers.

'I don't know about Arsenio, but I'll be up if you need to talk to me.' Malik says, giving a mock look of disapproval towards his brother, shaking his head in a joking manner.

'Hey hey, if my younger sister needs me, I'll be up as well. You can count on us.' He says to me. 'But, you can't blame me if I'm not the happiest person alive when you wake me.' He says, his prankster nature shining through.

The comfortable silence was a nice change, but it didn't last long. 'Well, ok. I'm going back to our dorms. You coming Ars?' Malik asks, heading towards the portrait hole, turning to wait for him brother to follow him.

With one last look at me, he answers, 'Yeah, I'm coming. Goodnight Mione.' He comes over and gives me one last hug. 'Goodnight.' He murmurs again.

'Night Ars.' I say, trying out his new nickname for my own tongue. Not bad, but it's going to take some getting used to. But, I like it. It's not as much as a mouthful as Arsenio is.

He lets go, and Malik walks over. 'Goodnight love.' He says, hugging me tightly and reassuringly.

'Night Malik.' I murmur into his shoulder. 'Do you have a nickname too?' I ask him curiously, knowing that now both I and Arsenio have nicknames.

He pauses, and thinks about it. 'You know, I actually don't think I do. I mean, I only just came up with Arsenio's, but you know, whatever. We'll ponder over that tonight while you get some rest. You'll need it tomorrow.' He answers, letting go of me. 'Ok, well, goodnight. Come on Arsenio. We have to sneak back to our dorms.' Malik says, walking over towards the common room door, with Arsenio right behind him. They both turn back, and give me one last smile before they turn and walk outside of the portrait hole, and out of sight, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Another question popped into my mind. **'Hey, Malik? Do you two mind coming back in? I actually have a question for you.' **

I hear him sigh in mind, but he silently agrees. I smile to myself and open the portrait door open again, letting my tired brothers back in. 'I guess I better make myself comfortable.' Malik says with a tired smile, as both he and Arsenio make their way over to the couch. Once they both sit down, they gesture for me to join them. I walk over to them, and sit myself in between the gap that separates them. 'Now, what was that question you had?' Malik asks, turning his head to face me.

'Um, why you two were, kind of in your own personal state of power, you were, holding onto Harry, but your skin wasn't making any contact with his? Do you remember what you were doing?' I ask curiously.

Malik's face morphs into one of concentration, deep in thought. 'You know, I really don't know. I mean, it's kind of like my body had a mind separate from the one I control. You felt that way too, right Ars?' Malik asks, turning to his brother.

'Yeah. I mean, all I could think about was pure rage, and how much I wanted to make that filthy weasel choke on his words.' He says, his fists clenching up again. 'Oh, sorry.' He muttered, putting on an apologetic smile when he saw my look of disapproval.

Malik begins to talk again. 'But, I do remember doing something like that. And according to Marc, if I'm upset enough, I can control the processes of one's body, and enforce my own will over theirs. Marc said I have the power to heal people, but I also have to power to destroy them. I guess I was doing a minor form of destruction.' Malik says meekly.

'Hey, that kinda sounds like blood bending. Ivory can do that, but she absolutely hates doing it. She says that when you blood bend someone, it inflicts a horrible pain upon the person you do it to. And, it requires a lot of power.' I tell him.

'Aw come on!' Arsenio exclaims, throwing his hands over his head. 'How come I'm the only one that can't control another person? I'm jealous.' He says, pouting.

'Ah come on. Do you know how much every kid wants to be a ninja? You don't even have to try! I mean, you throw punches and kicks like lightning, like no one else's business.' Malik says, trying to comfort him.

'Yeah yeah, sure whatever.' Arsenio says, laughing it off. He smiles at me and my brother, and adds, 'Well, sure. I mean, I would kick your arse in a battle any day.' He says, laughing harder.

'Um, no way! I would totally beat you!' Malik counters, facing his brother's challenge.

'Come on guys! Can't this wait? We need sleep!' I exclaim, pushing them up off the couch and out towards the portrait hole. 'You guys can argue this later. I want sleep!' I exclaim, trying to stifle my amusement, but the laughter breaks through anyway.

'Ah fine. But if you feel pain later, don't blame us.' Arsenio says smirking jokingly, punching Malik in the chest.

'Don't beat each other up, there's no way that I'll be able to sleep!' I laughing. I open the portrait hole and shove them out goodheartedly. 'Goodnight!' I laugh, slamming the portrait hole shut.

**'Goodnight love!' **Malik says, to the point where I can practically see the smile plastered on his face, despite everything that went down tonight.

**'Goodnight Mia.' **Arsenio says, joking back with that same smile. I smile back to them, and feel them pull out, and I turn back to the dark, empty common room.

Taking one last look around the room where my entire night's worth of sleep just evaporated like steamed water, I make my way to the staircase, leading up to the girls dormitories. _Well, I guess I might as well go up and try and get a wink's worth of sleep. It's worth a try… _ I trail off in my head, knowing fully that if I stay up any longer, my emotional state will only decline, and right now, mental deterioration is unaffordable, especially now, when everything is hanging in the unstable state of my three best friends. Well, at least I thought they were my best friends. I guess only time can tell what they really think about my, real identity.

I sulk silently up towards my dorm that I shared with Lavender and Pavarti. It's a good thing I didn't have to nerve to tell everyone in the Gryffindor house, or I would have been in serious trouble. I open the door, and step inside, and silently shut the door behind me. Lavender was snoring quietly, and Pavarti rustles noiselessly in her sleep. I crawl into bed, and yank the comforter over my body, opening my mind, to let sleep finally over take me, but it doesn't come easily.

**A/N: Hehe, sorry about the shorter chapters guys. I promise that they will get longer as the chapters progress onward, at least, no earlier than the 3****rd**** task, I promise. That one might as well be one of the longest chapters of them all, that, I can almost promise. :] Ok, so, I think that's it for this author's note. **

**Post Script: No it's not! That offer is still available, you want a secret, you can ask for one. And for those who would rather not have a spoiler, I would still appreciate some motivation, or some constructive criticism. But remember, no harsh comments please. And as a last note, if you have any questions about this story, you can either write those in a review or message me about it. :] Ok, enough of this super long author's note. Now, adios! **

**Actually, I will go ahead and answer one that I think you guys may have. When Malik was gripping Harry in his 'invisible' grip, I guess you can say it's a form of blood bending. Do you remember what Marc, Malik's healing master, said? If Malik is upset enough, he can control the body parts inside someone else, since he can heal people. Just message me if you have any more question about that.**

**Review Review Review people! There's that button, right down here. **


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: I own my plot and my OC's, but not anything else you recognize from J.K. Rowling's ingenious series. :] All that belongs to her. I am merely using it for my own imagination. **

**A/N: What's up? How is everyone? I would love to hear your replies, but I can't hear you through the computer screen. Sorry! :] And I am so sorry about the long wait! But, as you are about to find out, this is a long chapter. :]**

**Anyway, have you all forgotten about the third and final task? I hope not, that's going to be another fun one. Hopefully I've managed to keep your attention, I mean, I have so far right? Anyway, don't hate me for what's going to happen in that chapter. **

**One last final note, two actually. Keep those reviews coming! And second, beta readers are still wanted! (Needed actually) The computer can't spot all grammatical errors and neither can I, so that's why I need the human computer to do it! (And by that I mean your brain) **

**Ok, I'm done here. Onward with chapter 28! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 28

The weak morning sunlight shone through the window of my dorm, just my luck being that the window was right across from me. Groggily, I open my eyes and sit up, rubbing my eyes, trying to get used to the dim light in the room. Once my eyes focus on the room, I notice that everyone else is already awake and out of the dorm, which catches me by surprise, considering that there was no way that it was past eight thirty in the morning. Shaking off that fact, I slump out of bed and groggily get out of bed and get dressed in my school robes, and head down to breakfast. But on my way down through the common room, I notice that it too is deserted. It doesn't look like anyone has even been down here. _Oh why am I getting the sense that something terrible has happened? _I think desperately to myself, but I shake it off. _Pull yourself together. There is no way that Harry, Ron, or Ginny told anyone. There's no way… _I trail off. Trying to shake the ludicrous idea out, I continue to walk towards the Great Hall.

The hallway towards the Great Hall wasn't any different. Echoing behind me were my own footsteps, not being interrupted by anyone else's. _Where is everyone? Am I late? _I ponder to myself. _I guess everyone else is in the Great Hall. _I try and reassure myself, but just to make sure, I ask my brothers, who hopefully are already up. **'Hey, guys? Are you up?' **I ask them.

**'Yeah, we're up.' **Arsenio answers perkily.

**'What's up?' **Malik asks curiously. I notice that his question spikes Arsenio's attention.

**'Where are you guys right now? Are you in the great hall?' **I ask them. I feel the curiosity rise higher between the two of them.

**'Yeah, we're there.' **Arsenio answers, waiting for his brother to ask his unspoken question.

**'Why do you ask?' **Malik asks doing exactly what his brother wanted him to do.

**'Well, my common room was deserted this morning, and it can't possibly be that late, so I was just being, being…' **

**'Paranoid?' **Malik suggests, filling in my blank.

**'Yeah, paranoid…' **I trail off again. **'So? Is everyone in the Great Hall?' **I ask them.

**'Yeah, it looks like most of the school is in here, but, Malik and I walked by the library on our way here, and it looked like a decent amount of students were in there as well.' **Arsenio answers my question, somewhat reassuring me.

** 'Did someone sleep in this morning?' **Arsenio asks jokingly using the tone that someone would use with a younger child.

**'Ah, shut it. Maybe it did, ok. Last night wasn't something that a normal person would go through every day. So lay off!' **I reply with that same joking tone, but that shuts them up real fast. **'I'm heading into the Great Hall now.' **I say, rounding the corner and walk through the grand double doors of the Great Hall. I spot the Gryffindor table third from the right and search out for Harry, Ron and Ginny. My heart lifts when I spot them exactly where they normally sit, with one empty seat next to Harry, which is where I would be sitting. But something doesn't seem right. Harry and Ron are huddled over the top of the table, whispering secretly to each other while shooting nasty glances my way, while Ginny hangs her head down, concentrating on something below her. Still waiting at the entrance of the Great Hall, I search for my brothers, hoping for some last minute courage. I find them sitting at the Durmstrang table with some of their friends I've never met or seen before. They must of felt that I was trying to get their attention because they both turn around on their seats, and look straight at me, with a warm identical smiles plastered on their faces. **'You got this Mia.' **Malik reassures me, while Arsenio nods his head towards Harry and Ron.

I weakly smile back to them, then turn my attention back to my friends, take a deep breath, and begin my stride over to my friends, and take my seat next to Harry. 'Morning guys!' I say, trying my best to keep an upbeat tone of voice, trying to portray as if nothing happened.

But my upbeat attitude gets me nowhere. Ron jerks his head towards me, and his furious eyes lock with mine, his boring in to me. His head jerks back down as he mutters something spitefully at me that sounded all too similar to 'Filthy Snape.'

Harry on the other hand, hides his eyes in fear, as if he's scared that I will do something awful to him or as if he's afraid to say something out of turn. 'Harry? You ok?' I ask him, putting my hand on his shoulder. Big mistake.

Harry's eyes widen even more if possible. He jerks his shoulder out from under my grip, and dusts his shoulder off as if I were contagious. 'Don't touch me.' He mutters over and over again but it doesn't seem as if he's talking to me. His eyes are telling a different story than his words or his actions. For the split second that my eyes meet with his, they tell me everything I need to know.

He's conflicted. He knows that I haven't done anything wrong but he's split between whether he should support me and whether he should stay with Ron. He's sorry. His shining green eyes tell me all of that. I break the contact and try for Ginny's attention, hoping that I will have better luck with her, knowing that she didn't mutter a word last night, nor did she make any eye contact with anyone.

'Ginny? What about you? Are you ok?' I ask her, trying to get her attention in any way I can. Snapping my fingers, waving my hand in front of her face, and calling her name as loudly as I can without attracting any attention to myself all came to the same conclusion, no attention from Ginny. I come to a last resort. I double check to make sure that no one is really watching, and then I get to work. Sitting undisturbed in my golden goblet, sat pumpkin juice that is made of almost twenty percent water. With my hand under the table, I concentrate on the water in the goblet, and slowly get a little bubble of water floating just above the pumpkin juice. I raise it just a bit higher, and when it is just hovering above the goblet, I extend my fingers, sending the water flinging towards Ginny's head, hopefully getting her attention.

It succeeds. Her bright green eyes come shooting up, searching for the source of the noise, and her eyes lock with mine. But, she doesn't say anything. Instead her eyes harden just a small bit before her eyes return to the book she was reading before. 'Come on you guys…' I trail off, trying to see if I can get a reason as to why they are ignoring me. I mean, I know why they are mad, but I mean, if people notice that something isn't right behind the golden trio, then it will attract more attention, and I really don't need that. 'Come on, talk to me.' I plead.

'Talk to you?' Ron spats quietly, glaring at me. 'Now why in the world would we do that? We don't talk to traitors.' He sneers, turning away from me. Ginny remains concentrated on her book as if her brother never spoke, and Harry takes one last sorry look at me before returning his attention to Ron, the ringleader of this whole mess. My heart drops down to my stomach, and my stomach lost its appetite. I sadly grab an apple, but stare at it for a long time. I put it back, and grab a banana instead and walk away, trying desperately to keep the tears from pouring out of my eyes. With one last desperate look at my friends, who were glaring viciously at me, I turn around at run out of the Great Hall, not caring who the hell saw me. _My closet friends are ignoring me; did I make a fatal mistake by telling them? _I think hopelessly to myself.

I made my way around a corner and sprint outside to the willow tree. I find my rock that I normally sit on, and finally let the tears fall. I plop down on the hard granite rock and sniff, looking down at my reflection. Slowly making their way down my flushed cheek, the salty tears fall and they land silently in the lake below, creating rings that ripple in the reflection. I shed my robe, leaving me in just my muggle clothes, my skinny jeans and white t shirt, and bring my knees into my chest. I hug them tightly, and let my head fall to my arms. Crying silently, I don't notice that someone rushes up to me, calling my name as the person runs down the hill. I hear a schoolbag hit the ground with a ton of force, as if it was just dropped carelessly. 'Hermione? Hermione!' I hear someone call, and I can tell from the voice, that it was a guy.

I lift my head up, and wipe the tears away from my eyes, clearing my vision. Kneeling down in front of me was a very, very worried looking Theo, his eyes frantically searching my eyes for any sort of pain. 'Mione? Are you ok?' he asks gently, slowly getting up to sit next to me. I couldn't trust my voice to speak right now, so I just shake my head. 'What's wrong? Can you tell me?' he asks, putting his arm around me, rubbing aimless circles on my shoulder, trying to calm me down.

I shake my head again, and I lean my head against his shoulder, shutting my eyes again. 'Shh, it's ok Mione, please don't cry.' He murmurs, gently lifting my head off his shoulder as if I'm made of glass. 'You know I can't stand it when you cry.' He murmurs in my ear, continuing to rub my arm as he searches my eyes with his caring black ones. 'Come one Mione, do you want to come back to the Slytherin common room? I think that's where everyone else is. I can go find your brothers if you want me to.' He offers hopefully. 'Come on, I think the Slytherins can help you.' He offers once again.

'No,' I mutter, finding my voice again. 'I just want to stay here for now, with you.' I mutter again, smiling weakly up at him. His smile is enough to brighten my mood. His smile spreads across his face from ear to ear and his eyes light up as well.

'Well, then I'm going to do everything in my power to at least get you to stop crying. Seeing you cry absolutely breaks my heart.' He admits as he begins to rub circles on my arm.

'I actually have a question.' I say, sitting up against the willow tree with Theo right next to me. 'How did you find me here?' I ask him, looking deep into his eyes.

Theo laughs deeply. 'Ah, well, I was on my way back from the Great Hall when I saw you run out. And knowing me, I dropped everything I was doing and ran after you. I guess it's a good thing no one else was really paying attention. And I must admit you are really fast.' He says, laughing.

That makes me laugh. 'Really? I outran you?' I ask, laughing quietly.

Theo smiles, happy that he got me to smile. 'Well hey, I got you to smile, are you feeling better now?' he asks me, checking over me once more with his eyes. 'And yes, you outran me. But you got a head start, and I was the one that had to follow you, so that doesn't count.'

I stay quiet for a moment, feeling the small smile take over my facial expression. 'Yeah, I guess after laughing, I feel better. Is your offer still up? To go back to the Slytherin common room?' I ask him.

'Of course it is.' Theo says smiling.

'Well, come on. I really just want to be around friends right now. You know, friends that don't hate my guts right now.' I say, trying my best to crack a joke.

Theo acknowledges my joke and chuckles. 'Nice try.' He says, smirking at my lame attempt at a joke. 'And come on. I'll take you in, and then I'll go find your brothers. I'm pretty sure they saw you run out, and probably want to know if you're ok.' Theo reasons. I nod, letting him know I agree. He gets up to show me the way, but stops in mid stride. 'You know, I'll just have to tell you the password. I don't think you want to be seen with me down that hallway. You go ahead and I'll find your brothers. And don't worry; it's always the same people in the common room, Pansy and Astoria. No one else is ever in there.' Theo says, helping me up off the rock. 'The password is Superbia. You know where the common room is right?' he asks.

'Yeah I know. And superbia? That's Latin for pride.' I say, smirking a small bit.

'Oh you smart girl.' He says, smirking slightly. 'Ok, I'll see you in the common room, kay?' he asks.

'Yeah. And Theo?' I ask, getting his attention before he runs off in search for my brothers. He turns around, facing me with curiosity. 'Thank you.' I say, smiling. I walk up to him, and gently kiss him on the lips, then pull back before something gets way out of hand. I pull away and smile up at him. His smile brightens up like a star at night. He smiles down on me and rests his forehead on mine.

'And you, just made _my _day.' He mutters, smiling down at me, before he turns around, and runs up to the castle, disappearing from view. I smile to myself, and walk up to the castle, in the other direction towards the Slytherin common room.

Walking by myself in the empty dungeon, I decide to contact my brothers. **'Hey, has Theo found you guys yet?' **I ask them.

**'Yeah, he just got here. What's going on?' **Arsenio asks curiously, but that edge of seriousness wasn't totally eliminated.

Before I get the chance to answer him, Malik cuts in. **'Oh nevermind. Theo just told us. We saw you run out of the Great Hall, and we were going to run after you, but considering yesterday,-' **

** 'You mean earlier today.' **Arsenio cuts in smartly.

**'Whatever. Considering earlier today, we figured that you wouldn't want to be put in more stress than you already are. So, we kind of, well, ignored it. I'm sorry.' **Malik apologizes, ignoring what his brother said with an air of amusement of in his voice.

**'I'm sorry too.' **Arsenio apologizes directly after his brother.

**'Ah it's fine. I mean, I would have done the same thing. And, while we're on the subject of truth, I think we should tell the Slytherins.' **I say, speaking my mind, in my mind.

**'We should tell them… what exactly?' **Arsenio asks, not getting the point. I suppose Malik doesn't get it either, because I feel confusion from bother of them.

**'You know, the rest of the story. Our, bond with each other. I just want to put everything out there, and not hold any secrets from my friends anymore. Keeping secrets gets worse the longer they remain secrets. And besides, I think that they would take the news a lot better than Harry and Ron.' **I tell them, preparing myself for a battle of the persuasive, but it never comes.

**'Ok. Fine by me.' **Arsenio agrees without any struggle at all.

**'We've actually been meaning to tell them for a long time. I actually think it's funny that you had the same thought the exact same time we thought that.' **Malik says, laughing at his little connection.

**'Ok, so I'll see you guys in a minute.' **I say to them, pulling out.

I rounded the corner heading deep into the dungeon, but I stopped in my tracks. My footsteps died off the moment I stopped walking, but I heard footsteps walking towards me, at a rather fast pace. And it didn't sound as if the person was alone. Desperate for a place to hide, I dash to next corner and fling around it, for now out of sight of the people who were behind me. Breathing as quietly as I can, I turn my head around the corner, trying to see who was behind me. My heart sinks. Just down the hallway, were two pairs of gleaming eyes, one green, and the other blue.

'Come out Hermione.' One says indifferently. I sigh deeply, knowing I was caught. I round the corner and face my two furious friends. Well, one was furious, the other looked like he just wanted to be anywhere but there. 'So, what are you doing down here Hermione? Looking out for the snakes you call friends?' Ron sneers, glaring at me.

'N-no. I'm on my w-way to the library.' I stutter, hoping they don't notice that my excuse is far from true. Anyone who's been here for more than two years would know that the library is in the opposite direction from where I was heading.

'Were you now?' Ron asks, in disbelief, seeing right through my feeble excuse. 'Because, I didn't know you could get to the library through here. Care to show me the way?' he asks, smirking at me.

'Ron, no. I'm not showing you where the library is.' I say feebly. I turn away from Harry and Ron, and head back in the direction that I was headed before, just hoping that Ron lost interest. Because if Ron did, Harry would follow.

But just my luck, Ron runs up to me, with Harry lagging at his feet, somewhat reluctant. 'Oh no, I would much rather go with you.' He says, smirking. 'After all, the daughter of the most hated teacher in the school must surely know her way around the snake pit they call a home.' He sneers, whispering spitefully in my ear.

I feel my eyes begin to water once more, so in one last final attempt to get him to stop, I slowly bring my arm forward, and yank in backward, straight into Ron's gut. I turn around swiftly to find him doubled over in pain, his arms protecting his recently injured stomach. But when his head jerks upward, his eyes only seem to double in rage. 'How dare you, filthy ferret!' he roars at me, glaring at me. I look helplessly at Harry, who only looks back at me, trying desperately to stifle his laughter, but the amusement shines through his green eyes. I smile weakly at him, before turning my attention back to Ron.

'Ron, I'm sorry, but please-' I try to apologize, but he cuts me off.

'No! I don't want to hear _anything _that is about to come out of that mouth! How dare you do that to me!' He roars, standing straight up, apparently forgetting all about his previous pain. He stops, dead straight in front of me, glaring down at me with the evil glint gleaming in his eye. But, he gaze tears away from me, looking around at his surrounding before turning his attention back to me. 'Well look here, lying ferret. There isn't any water here for you to splash me with. What are you going to do now?' he asks me rhetorically.

Hopelessly, I jerk my head around, for anything that could help me. The tears in my eyes obscure my vision, and nothing comes to mind. But Ron's sudden falter in anger catches me off guard, his eyes boring into mind, with an edge of fear that I didn't see before. The only thing that I could think of, through the undeniable anger and sadness whirling around in my mind. _My eyes must be violet. _I think to myself. Something else weasels its way through the emotion clouding my mind, two little words. _My tears… _I yank my hands out from Ron's wavering grip, and I bend the water off my face, and extend my fingers, sending the water flying towards Ron's eyes, sending him flying backwards.

My window of opportunity is closing fast. I mutter an apology, then bolt of towards the Slytherin dormitory and lucky for me, the Slytherin common room was just around the corner. I run inside the indentation in the wall and catch my breath, waiting to see if Ron or Harry followed me in here. I hear footsteps, but from the sound of the echo, they were walking the other direction, away from the Slytherin common room.

'Superbia.' I mumble into the snake on the door, who gazed at me with a suspicious look in his eyes before he opened up. I hesitantly looked around in the common room. Everything was either a polished silver, dark green, or black metal in that room. It had a much different feel than the common room that I was used to. The common room I was in only empowered my overwhelming emotions even further. I fall to my knees on the hard stone beneath me, and the tears finally fall. My head falls to my hands, and I hear two people rush up to me.

'Hermione, Mione? Is that you?' one asks, a female.

'Astoria, come on! We have to at least get her to the couch.' Another says. Both take one side of me, and help me up. Together, they helped me over to the couch, then they both gently set me done. They stroke my arms comfortingly. 'Astoria, don't you think that you should find the others? Draco, Blaise, Theo, and her brothers?' Pansy asks, looking over my shaking shoulder.

'Yeah, you watch her. I'll be right back. I think Draco and Blaise are in the library.' Astoria says, leaving my side. I hear the portrait hole swing open, then close again, and Astoria was gone.

'I-is anyone e-else h-here?' I sob, trying to form my words correctly.

'No, no one else is here Mione.' Pansy says, trying her best to comfort me. 'It's normally just us, you know, our normal group.' She reassures me. I nod, crying silently to myself. Pansy does nothing but rub my shoulder comfortingly.

Not long after, the portrait hole swings open, and three pairs of loud footsteps come thundering towards me. 'Mione? What, what's wrong?' Theo asks, running over to me, immediately swinging his arm over my shoulder, rubbing my arm on the opposite side, while knocking Pansy's arm off of mine. 'What happened? Did you run into Harry and Ron again?' he asks me worriedly.

I nod frantically, leaning my head into his shoulder, as he continues to rub my arm. He gently kisses my head, trying his best to comfort me as the tears continue to fall. Malik takes my right, and Arsenio is standing behind me, behind the couch. 'Hermione? Are you ok?' Malik asks me this time, taking my free hand and rubbing it. Arsenio begins to stroke my hair.

'Do you want us to go beat the crap out of them? We did it once, we can do it again. And this time, we can get Draco, Theo, and Blaise to help us this time.' Arsenio says, trying to crack a joke, but only fails. And it doesn't matter, because the anger in his voice pretty much overpowered his lighthearted joke anyway.

'Yeah! You know I'm all up for beating up people who upset you. All of us are.' Theo says, shaking me gently, trying to get me to laugh again, and knowing that it worked last time.

I shake my head, but I can't help the smile that begins to make a reappearance on my face. I smile to Theo, then up at my brothers, who smile back at me, knowing that they've cracked the depressed me. 'No, that won't be necessary.' I say, trying hopelessly to keep the laughter out of my voice. I gathered myself up enough to speak clearly. Theo's smile also makes a reappearance on his face.

Just then, the portrait hole swings open once more, to reveal a very disheveled worried Draco, an amused looking Blaise, and a very agitated looking Astoria. Draco is at my side at an instant, shoving Theo away from me. 'Mione! Are you ok?' he asks me worriedly. His eyes scan over me making sure I wasn't injured in anyway. 'What happened?' he asks me once he calmed down, his arms around me in the blink of an eye.

My eyes meet with his, and it gives me the courage to speak clearly. 'I, I told Harry, Ron, and Ginny my secret. I told them that I was the daughter of Snape.' I tell them. Looks of shock and impression came across everyone's face.

'They didn't take it well.' Draco said blankly. It wasn't a question. He knew the answer. His stormy gray eyes grew stone hard. 'They made you feel this way.' He says again, not asking a single question.

'No, just Ron. Ginny won't talk to me, and Harry, well, he's wavering in between.' I answer his statement because he didn't phrase it like a question.

'I swear to Merlin!' Draco outbursts, his anger flooding the room, drowning everyone in it. His arms leave me to flail around in the air above his head before they move straight to his hair again. 'That filthy weasel will pay for this! How in the world can he hold this against you? You haven't done anything wrong, none of this is your fault!' he rants, pacing back and forth. 'Why can't that _weasel_ just keep his mouth shut? It's not like anything that vermin says is worth the air it takes for him to spit it out!'

'Mate, calm down. You know Hermione, she will tell you if she wants you to beat the crap out of him. And right now, I think she just wants you calm and by her side.' Blaise says rationally. Draco glares at him, and then his gaze softens.

'Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry Mione.' He apologizes, walking back over to me, and sits next to me. 'But please tell me that you want us to beat the freckles off of his face.' He begs.

'No need. I took care of that last night. We were there, and we kinda lost control. I, I think I nearly choked him.' Arsenio says, smirking to himself, proud of his work.

'Yeah, we were there with her last night, and Ars nearly beat the freckles off his face. Ron wasn't too happy with any of us. His sister didn't say a single word, and Harry, well, he ran off into his dorm when I nearly choked him.' Malik says more calmly, but he does exchange a smirk with his brother, not sorry for anything that happened last night.

'Hey, good for you!' Blaise says, grinning madly at the twins, who smirked back proudly.

'Aw come on! You didn't leave any freckles for us? I wanted to beat him up too!' Theo says, rather disappointed but nonetheless proud that at least someone beat him up. _Really? I know they care, but this is a little bit over the top. I'm sure Ron doesn't mean all of that, he can't… he can't possibly be avoiding me for something that is out of my power. I'm still the same old Hermione, just with a different name._

'Shut up guys! Hermione will tell you if she wants the Weasley beat up.' Pansy speaks up, Astoria nodding beside her, agreeing.

'But, that doesn't mean we don't want a word with him either.' Astoria reasons, developing that trademark Slytherin smirk on her face. Pansy mirrors it.

'No, guys it's fine. I don't want you guys to do anything you would regret, or get you expelled. I need you guys here, not at home.' I say, laughing, causing everyone around me to laugh, releasing all that anger put into the air a few moments ago. 'But, right now, you guys are the only ones that will talk to me. Most of the other Gryffindors noticed that Harry, Ron, and Ginny aren't talking to me, and they've been avoiding me as well. So, I have no one else to turn to.' I admit, my smile turning into a frown.

'Well, you could write to Ara.' Malik says, then pauses. 'I, I think we might have to do that as well Ars.' He admits. It strikes Arsenio's attention. It also raises an unspoken question among the rest of us, including me. 'We haven't told any of our friends either, that we are the twin sons of Severus.' He answers, noticing all of our confused looks.

'Yeah, we had to do a ton of damage control when Malik's name was pulled out of the goblet.' Arsenio adds on, raising the eyebrows of everyone in the room even higher. 'We didn't, we didn't exactly register at Durmstrang under our real name.' he admits sheepishly.

'Yeah, Father registered us under the name of Malik and Arsenio Anderson. He had to keep us protected. Ara is registered as Ara Frella at her school.' Malik says, admitting the truth.

'Really? Why is that?' Blaise asks curiously, taking a seat on the floor.

'Because, because Father lied to Voldemort. He lied, and said that all of his children died. Arsenio and I died of a tragic accident, and Hermione was captured by Mr. Malfoy, and was killed by him, but he was allowed to keep Ara out in the open.' Malik says.

'That's right, Father saved Mione, gave her away to a muggle family. He did it to save everyone actually.' Draco says, putting two and two together. 'But why Ara and not you three?' he asks curiously.

'Father was allowed to keep Ara, was because he had to save us, because, of a certain reason…' Arsenio trails off, being evasive about the topic.

'Then why is Ara registered under a different name?' Pansy asks, catching that detail.

'Father took extra precautions. Voldemort doesn't know what school she goes to anyway.' Malik answers. _Merlin, Father really thought this all through didn't he._

**'We have to tell them, especially when you two brought up this topic.' **I tell them, trying to persuade them again, sensing doubt coming from Arsenio.

**'Ok, can you tell them though? We'll elaborate because we know more about it.' **Malik says, agreeing with me. Arsenio silently agrees, nodding his head at the two of us.

'And what would that certain reason be?' Pansy asks curiously, asking the unasked question of everyone else.

'Because, Voldemort thought of the three of us as a threat.' I begin, scanning over their faces. I was only met with confusion, so I continued. 'We three together, we are what's known as Supernatural Triplets. They are a group of, well, triplets that possess special powers. That's our own prophecy, we are to help Harry eliminate Voldemort.' I tell them, cowering from what might happen. They might take this the wrong way, like how Harry and Ron did.

Silence is what meets my ears. Malik, Arsenio and I exchange worried glances when no one says anything. Their faces remain the same, and the air remains silent. 'Guys?' Malik asks uncertainly, waving his hand in front of Draco's face, trying to bring him back to reality.

'Come on, can't you say something?' Arsenio asks, waving his own hand in front of Astoria's face, trying to accomplish the same thing.

'Really?' Theo asks, being the first to come back to reality. Malik, Arsenio and I nod, looking him dead in the eye. 'That's so _cool!' _He exclaims, his face showing pure excitement, as if he were a little kid again.

'What can you do?' Pansy asks, being the second to come back, she too sounding like a little child. Astoria snaps out of it next, her face possessing one of excitement as well. Blaise comes back next, his expression being one of high interest, while Draco is the last to come out of his state of shock, and he too, has an expression of pure interest and curiosity.

Malik and Arsenio release relieved sighs, and I let the smile overtake my face, being beyond describing how relieved I am that they didn't react badly. 'Well, do you remember that day, that day during winter break, when our eyes changed from violet to gold?' I ask them. They nod, letting me continue. 'Well, that, that was due to the fact, that we three are super natural.' I say, waiting to see if they could peace it together.

'So, when Arsenio kicked my arse, that's his power?' Draco asks. Arsenio nods.

'Yeah, I don't think mine's as cool as the others though. But, my master told me something…' he trails off, deep in thought.

'So, when Mione saved me by making the water shoot me out, and warmed me up, is that hers?' Draco asks again, putting all the pieces together.

'Yeah, that's mine. I can control the natural elements of earth. Like this.' I say, giving them a little demonstration. I look around, and I see a small puddle of water, sitting near the window. I concentrate, and strain my fingers, making the water rise. I bring it closer, and whip it around my fingers, showing off the little skills that I could do here. 'I've only begun my water training. But, when if I get good enough, I can control the weather!' I say, getting over excited, but I gather myself under control. 'Sorry…' I mumble blushing under Draco's amazed glance, and Theo's look of awe.

'You guys never saw mine, so, I'll just tell you. I have the power to heal people.' Malik says, not bothering to give a demonstration.

'Wow! You guys are amazing!' Pansy exclaims excitedly.

'That's not all.' Arsenio cuts off everyone's party for more information. Everyone quiets down again, and returns their attention back to my brothers.

'We also have the power to communicate with each other without speaking. We can also feel each other's emotions. That's how close this destiny makes us.' Malik says. 'Here, Blaise, whisper something in my ear.' Malik says, returning Blaise's skeptical look. Blaise walks over to him and whispers something in his ear, causing him to laugh. **'Ok, he said that me that we are all acting mental, and he doesn't believe us. Shall we prove him wrong?' **Malik asks, smirking at the two of us.

Arsenio returns his smirk. An identical one was plastered on my face. **'Oh, we'll prove him wrong alright.' **Arsenio says, smirking madly at Blaise. 'So? You think we're mental now do you?' he asks, stifling his laugh at Blaise's bewildered face.

'Aw come on Blaise, you should know us better than that. We're not mental.' I say, smirking at Blaise with the same amount of amusement as my brothers.

Blaise's mouth opens and closes, muttering like a fish, but no real words come out. 'I, I don't u-understand!' he exclaims. 'But, I believe you now!' he says.

'Well that's good.' Malik muses, smirking at Blaise, who still really didn't believe us. At least, not by the look on his face.

Just before anyone else got the chance to say anything else, the portrait door swings open, making everybody cringe, hoping that it isn't one of the Slytherins. Draco instinctively moves in front of me, shielding me from whoever is on the other side of that door.

'There will be no need for that Mr. Malfoy.'

Dumbledore steps through the portrait hole, with a bright smile on his face, and that same twinkle in his eyes. 'There will be no need for that.' He repeats, smiling. Draco backs up from in front of me and the small blush evident on his cheek.

'I'm sorry sir.' Draco apologizes. 'Is there a reason why you're here Professor?' he asks, sitting up straighter.

'I am here to collect Miss. Hermione, and Mr. Malik and Arsenio.' Dumbledore says, catching our attention.

'Sir?' Malik asks, standing up alongside his brother.

'There are people here to see you.' Dumbledore says, gesturing for the three of us to follow him to his office.

'Oh! Ok, um, we'll see you guys later, ok?' I say, walking over to my headmaster. I turn around and wait for my brothers. 'Come on.' I say, waving my hand towards me.

They walk over, and wave goodbye to the Slytherins, who wave back kind of disappointedly. 'We'll see you guys later.' Astoria says.

Draco gets up, and walks over to me. 'I'll see you later, ok?' he asks, with a small smile creeping up on his face. I nod, and smile up to him. He smiles back down at me, and lightly kisses me on the cheek before stepping backwards, letting me go. I smile, and turn away, hiding the blush that was creeping onto my cheeks. Dumbledore opens the portrait hole again, and allows us to walk ahead before closing the door behind him.

I walk a couple paces ahead of my headmaster with my brothers on either side of me. **'So? You and Draco huh?' **Arsenio asks, smirking at me.

**'What? Where, where did you get such a, such an idea?' **I ask, trying madly to hide my blush again.

**'Oh, from nowhere, just that little scene back there, in the common room.' **Malik says, wearing that same Snape trademark smirk on his face, identical to the one his brother is wearing. **'So? You're gonna go for it? You already know he's falling in that bottomless tunnel of adulation.' **Malik slurs, elbowing me in the side.

**'Adulation, a synonym for love.' **Arsenio clarifies, sensing my confusion.

**'Oh ha ha, very funny.' **I mumble, hiding my blush from my brothers. Too bad they can feel it anyway. Sometimes I really have to curse this stupid connection we have. And truth being, I knew what adulation meant, but, uh, my mind is kind of fogged up right now.

**'So? You never did answer my initial thought, do you like him?' **Arsenio asks, knowing the answer well enough for himself. He knows perfectly well that he can feel it coming from me, but he wants to hear me say it. I can feel Malik trying to pry his way into my thoughts as well.

**'Argh you guys are so infuriating!' **I shout mentally, making them both physically cringe backwards, clutching their heads. **'But fine, I'll answer your stupid question. Yes, I like him, but I, I also kind of like Theo…' **I say, admitting the truth to now, the only two people who know.

**'Well, who do you like more?' **Arsenio asks all evidence of tomfoolery gone from his voice.

**'That's the problem, I don't know!' **I exclaim, becoming increasingly distressed.

**'I'm sorry, sorry. But, we shouldn't be talking about this before your training. We'll talk to you after, maybe we could help you.' **Malik says, cutting off all other questions.

**'My brothers, help me with guy problems?' **I scoff off, turning the corner to Dumbledore's office.

**'Hey, we're guys! We know how guys think!' **Arsenio backs himself up. **'No matter what you say, we're going to help you after our training. Then maybe after, we could go back to the Slytherin common room, maybe you can see how each of them really feel.' **He adds, giving his brother a genius moment.

**'That's it! Each of us will ask either Draco or Theo some questions! Then we just tell you the answers, and maybe that will help your dilemma!' **Malik says, sounding utterly excited. **'We'll do that after our training. Ars and I will go ahead to the common room after we're done, then you could meet us there!' **Malik says sounding extremely impressed with himself.

**'So it's settled. After training, we'll head back to the common room, and question them! Ah, I like where your head is at Malik!' **Arsenio exclaims, sounding just as impressed.

**'Yeah yeah, I'll meet you guys after training.' **I say, pulling out. I walk into Dumbledore's office, with my brothers and headmaster right behind me. 'Hey Ivory!' I exclaim, greeting my master in the most informal way ever.

'Hello Hermione! Ready to get started?' she asks me, with a smile on my face. 'Come on, we're going to get to some serious water bending today.' She says, sounding almost, excited.

'Sure am! Let's go. Bye Arsenio, Malik. Thanks Dumbledore!' I say, waving to everybody before my master and I walk out of Dumbledore's office.

Once we are halfway down the hallway, on our way to the lake, I ask her the question that popped into my mind. 'You said that we're getting to serious water bending today? What does that mean?' I ask her.

'Oh, it means we're getting to the fun, advanced stuff. Since you mastered all the basic forms, and you actually mastered all the advanced forms, so I thought you would be able to handle the much harder things. You are lucky, mastering all of your forms with a lot of time left to play with the advanced techniques.' She says, sounding like a little child herself.

'Like what?' I ask her as we walk out towards the lake. But before I give her the chance to answer, I spoke up once more, about something entirely off subject. 'Hey, Ivory? Is it ok if we also work on some mental training? I got into a fight with my friends and I almost lost control.'

'Of course!' Ivory exclaims. 'But, we're gonna have to put that in with your training today. But, I thought I would be fun to start with some really fun advanced water bending.' She adds with a small all-knowing smirk.

'Like what?' I ask again, this time not interrupting her.

'Oh nothing, maybe just some weather controlling.' She says, smiling madly. My shocked expression must have fueled her excitement. 'Now don't worry if you don't get this on the first try. This is very, very difficult.' She reassures me. I smile broadly at her, and she smiles back at me. 'Alright! Ready for a demonstration?' she asks me. I nod enthusiastically. 'Alright! Here is weather bending at its best, I think.' She says, back pedaling just a little bit. She shakes it off, and takes her stance. 'Ready?' she asks me. I respond by nodding. She nods, and then begins. Her motions are bold and grand, swirling her arms around and around her. Looking upward, I notice that the clouds above her begin to swirl around and around, getting darker and darker. She continues to swirl her arms around her until the clouds become black and are circling faster and faster. She stops, and forcefully bring her hands down. With the movements of her arms, the water in the clouds fall with it, reaching terminal velocity within a matter of seconds. The rain comes splashing down hard on arms that are protecting my face. 'And that is how it's done.' She says, bowing slightly at me.

'That's amazing! Is it my turn to try?' I ask her excitedly. She nods, and steps aside, letting me take my own stance.

'Whenever you're ready.' She says, smiling encouragingly.

**MALIK'S POV**

'Hello Master Marc.' I greet him formally, bowing slightly before him.

'Ah stand up Malik.' Marc laughs, straightening me up with his hands. 'We've got work to do. Let's go.' He says, walking towards the door of Dumbledore's office.

'Coming sir. Bye Ars, thanks Dumbledore.' I say, waving them out.

Marc and I walk down the hallway on our way to the library where we normally train. Marc has his own private section in the library for us to train in, which is good. Having someone walking in on you healing something with your mind isn't exactly something you can cover up with little white lies. 'Hey, Marc? Can I ask you something?' I ask him as we make our way to the library.

'Sure, but is it something about your other master?' he asks, seeing right through me and my questions.

It never fails to astound me how he is able to do that. I guess being a healer for so long enables you to read people's body language and know what they're going to say before they say anything. 'Yeah, but there's something else too.' I say. It catches his attention as he turns to face me, waiting for my question. 'Ok, the other night, my sister told her friends about her secret, and they got really upset with her. They started yelling at her, and saying things that really irked my brother and I. He went all super human on one of her friends, but I did something that I'm not entirely sure of.' I start, looking into his eyes hesitantly.

'Oh? What did you do?' he asks curiously, his full attention focused on my experience.

'Well, I, uh, I really don't know what I did, but I was almost strangling another one of her friends without laying a hand on him. He was just hovering off the ground right in front of my hands. The only thing I really remember about that besides that was that I was looking straight into his eyes, almost laughing at the fact that he was begging for mercy. Is there something wrong with me?' I ask, scared.

He thinks for a moment before answering. 'Well that depends, you said that they said something that really upset you. Do you remember what that was?' he asks me, exploring the possibilities.

I rack my brain, trying to remember what the ginger one said. I shut my eyes tightly in concentration.

'_You're wrong. She will never be happy with you, not as long as she's related to you!'_

My eyes flash open. _That's what the ginger one said! _The anger comes flooding back. The anger, the power, the rage, the hatred, the doubt… _snap out of it! _I shake my head loose of all those emotions I felt before. 'He, he said that my sister would never be happy as long as she was related to the Snape's.' I tell him, my voice quiet.

He remains quiet for another couple moments. 'How did you feel, after he said that?' he asks again. Knowing him, he's probably onto something.

I think again, back to the emotions I felt after I remembered. 'I really don't know how to describe what I felt. I felt indescribable amounts of anger, rage, and hatred. But I also felt surges of power rushing through my veins. So, what does that mean?' I ask him.

He thinks everything through for another moment. 'Well, remember when I told you, that if you ever felt enough negative emotion, a triplet with your kind of power possess the power to control the body of another person. Since you control the human processes, you are able to do anything that involves the human body. But this is only something you can do when you feel all of those emotions in monstrous quantities.' Marc says, back pedaling on his theory.

'But, there was something else I felt too.' I add on, breaking him out of his trance. He doesn't look up, but I continue anyway. 'I also felt a flicker of doubt.' I say, my voice getting much quieter. He looks up at me, but this time it isn't curiosity that flickered in his eyes, instead, it was genuine concern. 'I mean, what if he was right? I mean, she would have never fought with her friends if she wasn't related to us…' I trail off, my voice cracking. The steady flow of tears slowing makes their way down my face.

'Malik you are talking nonsense.' Marc says, putting a comforting hand on my shaking shoulder. 'You know your sister loves you, and she would do anything for you. You know that better than anyone.' He comforts me. 'And you know, I thought you knew better than that.' He jokes slightly, lightening my spirit instantly.

'Yeah, I know. I'm sorry.' I say, wiping the tears away with my sleeve, feeling ashamed of my sudden overreaction.

'Yeah, you know that better than anyone. Now, answer this for me. Do you ever want to do something like that again?' he asks.

'What? Of course not! The pain in Harry's eyes was almost too much for me to bear! But, for some reason, I didn't stop. I never want to put anyone in that position again.' I say truthfully. 'I don't think I will ever be able to handle that much negative power.' I say, looking Marc straight in the eye.

'Then it's settled. We are going to work more on controlling your emotions. Because we all know the inevitable is going to happen. Voldemort will find out that you are alive, and will try to force you to do something very similar to this. We are going to have to work on controlling your emotions so this never happens.' Marc says smirking all-knowing at me. 'And let me tell you, this training isn't going to be a walk in the park.' He informs me. 'Are you up for it?'

'I'm always up for a challenge.' I smirk, mentally preparing myself for what's to come. 'I mean, how hard can it be?'

'Well then, let's get started.'

'Wait, what about my other master? That was my second question.' I say, stopping him in his tracks, wanting to know about the other person responsible for teaching me the art of healing.

'Of course. I have been teaching you the physical side of healing, being able to do this side is definitely important, but learning the emotional side, as I was talking about before is probably more important. That is why you have two masters, me and Ascella.' He begins, and he continues, knowing me well enough that I have about a billion questions. 'But let me warn you, she doesn't train normally. She possesses the ability of legilimency. She will be able to reach inside your mind and pull out your worst fears and memories. That is why she is one of the best healers there is. She will pull out your fears, and help you overcome them. That is why she is my partner.' He tells me. 'She will be able to help you with all sorts of things you could use during the third task, if I can get a hold of her in time.' He adds on, transcending back into his mind.

'Really? That's amazing, and kind of intimidating.' I admit. 'When is she gonna be here?' I ask eagerly. 'What kind of things will she teach me?'

'I don't know, on both of those. She is an extremely busy woman and she has her own way of teaching, but I will try and contact her again when we are through here. But I promise you that you will see her sometime. She must teach you to get your emotions under control. I alone cannot teach you that. She can, and will. Now, are you ready to show me that fracture healing technique I showed you?'

**ARSENIO'S POV**

'I guess that just leaves you and me.' I say to my master, who laughs heartily.

'Yeah yeah, come on Arsenio. I actually have to talk to you about something, something that might make your day.' Brock says, smirking at me all knowingly.

Excitement surges through me. 'Really? Like what? Does it have something to do with my fighting?' I ask him. He nods, and his smirk widens. 'What is it what is it?' I ask curiously, trying to get something out of him, but it isn't working.

'Nope! I remain silent until we get to the training grounds.' Brock says. 'Thanks Headmaster, I'll take it from here.' Brock says, waving to the headmaster of Hogwarts.

'It was my pleasure Brock. Now go train.' He says, smiling brightly before turning around back to his desk. Brock leads me out of the office and leads me down the stairs and out into the hallway.

'Brock? Were you a student here?' I ask curiously, making the connection of how close the headmaster and my master seems to be.

'Wow, smart lad you are.' Brock says, smirking lightly. 'Yeah, I went to school here. I was actually in Gryffindor, top of my class.' Brock says, laughing at his past memories. 'This is where I decided to become a material arts master.' He tells me, then holds his finger up, silencing my question. 'I know what you're about to ask, so I'll answer it. I decided I would become a material arts master because I was actually beat up a lot here, in my younger years. So, I thought I would train myself in the art of material arts. I'd rather not go into the details though.' He says, getting quiet all of a sudden.

I caught on, and decided not to question him any further. He must have had a tough first couple of years here, which is strange. I always got the vibe that Hogwarts was a safe school, unlike mine. My school crawling with future death eaters… it disgusts me. 'I bet your experiences are kinda like mine.' I mumble.

But he heard me. I can't decide whether or not I intended for him to hear that, but it doesn't matter now. 'Why? What's wrong with Durmstrang, besides the fact that it is mainly focused around dark magic?' He asks me.

'Well, you know the place is crawling with death eaters right? Well, the only thing they seem to want to do is perfect their dark magic skills. Malik and I keep to ourselves, but we have to do it, it's a part of our grades.' I admit to him_. I don't think I have ever told that to my sister… probably because she would flip and demand we transfer schools immediately_.

'Wait, does that mean that you've performed dark magic?' Brock asks the serious tone in his voice cut through me.

'Y-yeah…' I stutter, trying not to make my voice crack.

'Like what?' he asks seriously again. _Seriously, if he keeps up with the serious hard hitting questions I'm going to have to roundhouse kick that mouth so he can't ask anymore. _I think spitefully to myself.

'T-the un-unforgivables.' I say weakly, my voice cracking through the silent tears flowing down my face. 'I'm sorry! I never wanted to! I never wanted to perform any of those god forbidden spells! They're awful, and I never want to inflict that much pain on anyone ever again!' I cry out loud, my voice cracking in every sentence.

Brock stops walking, and puts a hand on my shoulder. 'I'm proud of you.' He says simply.

That stops tears almost immediately. _He's proud? _'What…?' I ask weakly.

He smiles reassuring at me. 'I'm proud, because you didn't turn out like everyone else at your school.' He begins, holding up his finger to silence my questions. 'I'm proud, because you held all the power of Voldemort in your wand, yet you hated every moment of it. You hated inflicting pain on someone else on purpose, for reasons other than self-defense. That tells me a lot about your character Arsenio.' He tells me.

My spirit is lifted with each of his words. 'Thanks Brock…' I smile, and then hug him, thankful for such an understanding master.

'I see a lot of myself in you, you know?' he tells me truthfully as we begin our walk back to the grounds. 'I've always hated the fact that some people think they have the right to hurt people just to make themselves feel bigger. That's why I learned material arts, so that I could defend myself when needed, not to cause anyone any harm.'

No words come to mind, and I don't feel the need for them to. Brock just gave me one of the most powerful weapons against Voldemort, that evil is always at a disadvantage, no matter how staggering the odds are. 'Thanks Brock, for everything.' I mutter again, before something else comes to mind. 'Hey, Brock? Didn't you say that you had something to tell me? Or was that it?' I ask him.

His face lights up with the entire laid back attitude it had before. 'Oh, that.' He smirks lightly. 'You'll love this. It's something I've been researching for quite some time now, ever since I started training with you.' He begins as we walk onto the grounds. 'Ok, so you said that your sister has the ability to bend the natural elements?' he asks just to clarify. I nod. 'Well, whatever element she just so happens to be bending at the time, you have that power too. Sort of. Take for example, say she's bending air. You will have that power at your disposal. You will be able to use the air around you in your fighting. It's kind of hard to explain…' he trails off, in search for a better way of explaining this.

'Maybe we can just ask my sister and her master if we can train with them, maybe later on this week.' I suggest.

'That's a brilliant idea. Merlin, you are a bright boy. So, I will ask Ivory when we are done training here. I'm sure she's heard about this.' Brock says, accepting my suggestion and moving on with my training. 'Now, show me that double roundhouse kick with an upper cut.'

**HERMIONE'S POV**

The rain falls down from the dark swirling cloud above and gently pours down on my face, mixing with the sweat that was already slowly making its way down. Panting hard, I turn to face my master, who had a look of pure impression and pride on her face.

'Hermione, that was amazing.' She praises me, walking over to me. 'I don't think that I caught on that fast when I was learning, and I had to teach myself! You are definitely not someone to mess with.' She compliments me, but that strikes a nerve, just a little bit.

'I know, but, now that I know how to do it, what happens if I lose control? Will I subconsciously create something like that?' I ask her, slightly scared of my own power.

She thinks it over for a moment before answering. 'Yes, there is a chance that you might do something like this, but that's what the mental training is for. I'm sure your brothers are doing the same thing, based on what you told me.' She reasons, making me feel better.

'Alright.' I nod, accepting her reason. _I guess all I have to do is not lose my temper, and everything will be just fine… _I think to myself. My attention moves from my master to Arsenio, who are walking up to Ivory.

'I hope I'm not interrupting, but I have some questions for you Ivory.' Brock says, smiling politely at my master. Arsenio walks out of the castle door and runs down to greet me. 'I have discovered something that will help Arsenio fight better. You know of Arsenio's power, fighting?' Brock asks.

'Yes, I have.' Ivory answers, with a nod of her head, her golden blond hair bouncing up and down.

'Well, this is kind of hard to explain…' Brock trails off, trying to think of a good way of explaining this.

'Whatever element my sister just so happens to be bending at the time, I am able to manipulate that same element if that particular element is at my disposal.' Arsenio answers for his master. 'That's how Brock explained it to me earlier.'

'Thanks Arsenio.' Brock says, flashing a smile of appreciation towards his student. 'So, with that explanation, would it be ok if Hermione and Arsenio trained together, so Arsenio can get used to this new found power?' Brock asks Ivory.

She nods. 'Of course, the next time we come to train, you two can train together.' Ivory approves. 'Now come on Brock. Let's go find Marc and report our progress with Dumbledore. Hermione, you are done for today.' Ivory says, waving goodbye.

'You too Arsenio, good job today. We will practice again tomorrow, only this time you get to spar with your sister.' Brock says, striking excitement in my brother. Not only could I feel it, but I could see it painted on his face. This should be good.

'Really? Awesome!' Arsenio yells, pumping his fist in the air, causing me to laugh. _This should be fun… _I think to myself once more, shooting an amused look towards my brother.

'And if anyone gets hurt, that's where Malik can help!' I add in, fueling Arsenio's excitement.

'Yeah! I won't hold back if you won't.' Arsenio says with a glint of raw power shone brightly in his violet eyes for just a moment before it disappears.

'Good grief Ars.' I scoff, shoving him away from me goodheartedly. 'And don't worry; I won't make this easy for you.'

Arsenio smiles, but then his smile retreats a bit. 'But, Mione, please tell me to stop if I hurt you. I would never forgive myself if I actually hurt you, even if Malik healed you.' Arsenio says, walking back to me.

'Hey! I'm not some little kid you know.' I exclaim, mock offensive in my voice. 'Don't worry about me. Just consider yourself lucky I've only learned one element, and one fourth of my full material arts potential.'

'Oh, so you're at the advantage. Gee, thanks Mia…' Arsenio smiles goodheartedly. 'Well then, with all that put aside, may the best sibling win.' He says, offering his hand out.

I laugh, and extend my hand out to meet his. 'I plan to.' I smirk jokingly. I shake his hand firmly. I hear him laugh, and lets go of my hand. 'Come on, we should go find Malik now.' I say walking away from my brother, waving for him to follow me. He runs back up to me and walks by my side, matching my pace.

But it doesn't take long to find him. I spot him down the hallway, talking with the masters. Arsenio and I rush over to them.

'Oh, are you guys done too?' Malik asks as he notices us.

'Yeah, we're done. Come on! It's time to investigate!' Arsenio says, dragging his brother away by the wrist, chanting excitedly. I'm just surprised that he remembered, and still wanted to go through with this as badly as he did.

'Wait! He might not be done talking with Marc yet!' I say, grabbing hold of Malik's other wrist, pulling him back with no avail, my brother's superior strength overpowering mine.

'No, I'm done. Go have fun Malik.' Marc says, shooing him off with the flicking of his hand, smiling at him.

'Ok! See you tomorrow Marc!' Malik says, taking his wrists back from both me and Arsenio. 'Ok, so, two things, one, our masters were talking about this fight that the two of you were going to do tomorrow, explain that.' He asks eyeing both of us with curiosity.

'Oh, well Brock was researching, and discovered that I could fight with whatever element Mione is bending at the time. So, we were going to train tomorrow, then, we were going to spar. That's where you come in. If we get hurt, you can practice your healing on us!' Arsenio says excitedly, his excitement drowning the both of us.

'Ok, calm down Ars, you're flooding my mind with excitement. You just want to fight Mione, don't you.' He says, his "question" coming out as a statement rather than an actual question, seeing right through his brother. The smirk on Malik's face grows broader and broader, the longer Arsenio says nothing.

'I can answer that.' I cut in, eyeing Arsenio playfully. 'Yes.'

'That's not true!' Arsenio exclaims, countering me. 'It's the wonderful educating experience in the art of fighting, and fighting against someone who can bend the elements makes the whole experience that much more enriching… yeah your right.' Arsenio says, giving in to the truth, laughing.

'As for the second one, are we really going to go on with this, in your words interviewing Draco and Theo?' Malik asks, sounding kind of skeptical.

'Yes! Why shouldn't her two greatest brothers help her out with her problems?' Arsenio exclaims excitedly. 'Come on; let's head over to the Slytherin common room. I've got detective work to cover.' He smirks lightly before both he and Malik run ahead of me.

The only thing I can think the entire way back to the Slytherin common room is I feel terribly sorry for whichever friend gets Arsenio.

**A/N: Alright! There's a long chapter for you people. :] You're welcome. The next following chapters will be more interesting, I promise. And for all of you who review, thank you! You are the sole reason I write EVERYDAY, so I can update as soon as I can. But, I've gotten really busy all of a sudden, so no promises. But I can promise one thing. I will at least have the next chapter out before summer is over. Wow, those are depressing words, "Summer is over." Wow… =/ Ok, before I depress you all, I'll just go straight to the questions. **

**Ok, now for my question to you all. **

**Who do you think is going to be the first to approach Hermione again?**

**Theo or Draco? Who would you like more?**

**Alright, see you in the next chapter! And remember, review, review! :]**

**~Prongs**


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my OC's and my plot! But seriously, don't take my word for it, there's a full list of disclaimers on my page! (:**

**AN: Heh… h-hey guys. *Nervous laughter* What's up? Ok, I'll stop. I am SO sorry for dropping off the face of the planet… :/ High School kicked me harder than expected… And, don't expect much from this story… not until they give us a break. -_- **

**I PROMISE I'll make a stronger effort to actually write, just, not now. I will when my grades are a little better. ;)**

**Anyway! Onward, (Finally) with the newest chapter! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 29

Panting slightly, I have to jog to keep up with my excited brothers. 'Come on guys! Do you really have to do this?' I yell up to them.

They stop running and both turn to look back to me with identical smiles on their faces. 'What? Can't we be excited about helping our younger sister?' Malik says, who was at first just as wary about this before, but I guess his brother won him over.

'Yeah, you can!' I say breathlessly as I finally catch up to them. 'But, what am I supposed to be doing? And why do I have to come with you? It's not like I'm going to be helping you.' I offer up, desperately trying to get out of this situation, hoping they don't make it worse for me.

'Two things.' Malik starts. 'What else are you going to do today? Your friends aren't exactly pleased with you.' He starts, smiling apologetically for bringing it up.

'And once we're done, we want to tell you everything. And maybe we can convince them to totally spill it in front of you.' Arsenio reasons again, winning me over.

My facial expression gives me away, and my shoulders slump. 'Fine. I'll go.' I say bluntly. 'But if you turn them against each other, I will never forgive you, either of you.' I say, pointing my finger in their faces to emphasize my point.

They pull their hands up in surrender. 'Ok ok! If they fight over you, I'll heal them! But I want to get started.' Malik says, joking with me.

I roll my eyes and follow them into the Slytherin common room. 'We're back!' Arsenio announces, throwing his hands in the air. 'You may now bow down in my glory.'

Pansy and Astoria laugh, as they walk over to my brother and kneel before his feet and bow down. 'We are not worthy!' Astoria pleas, pretending to kiss his shoes. Arsenio laughs, and pulls his foot away, offering a hand up to Astoria while Malik offers a hand to Pansy. 'We actually need a favor. Where are Draco and Theo? We need a word with them.' Arsenio asks, sounding serious.

That catches their attention. 'Oh, I don't know… why do you ask?' Astoria asks sounding slightly concerned.

The door opens up behind us, and I feel myself freeze. 'I know where they are, hold on I'll go get them.' Blaise says, smiling at us before walking towards the boys' dormitory. "DRACO! THEO! Get out of there! You have visitors!' Blaise yells from the hallway, still visible to us.

There is silence for a moment before footsteps can be heard in the hallway, walking towards us. Emerging from their dorms, Draco and Theo emerged and walked up to Blaise. 'And who is it?' Theo asks. Blaise says nothing, but points our way, smirking.

'Oh! Mione!' Theo says excitedly before rushing over to me with Draco right behind him. 'I, I thought you had that training.' He says, getting up next to me.

'Yeah, we're here too, thanks.' Arsenio cuts in, with mock hurt evident in his voice and his face. 'And she's not here to see you, we are.' He adds in, earning the attention from both Draco and Theo.

'Ah don't get your feelings hurt.' Malik cuts in, noticing the looks on their faces, but smirks nonetheless. 'Ars and I are here to talk to you.' He restates.

'Um… we're just going to be over there, if you need us.' Pansy says, sensing that both she and Astoria weren't needed in this conversation. She grabs Astoria wrist and walks her back over to the couch, where they begin to giggle about something I didn't pick up. I turn my attention back to my brothers.

'What do you want with us?' Draco asks, eyeing my brothers with mock suspicion.

'That's, confidential.' Malik pauses, thinking of something to say to them. 'We just have some questions to ask you guys. Draco, you come with me.' Malik adds, gesturing for Draco to follow him. Draco's eye brow rises to his hair line before he steps in front of Theo and walks off with my brother to one of the Slytherin dormitories.

'Bye Mione! I'll talk to you later.' Draco calls out at me before Malik yanks his arm again, turning him around.

'Um, I assume I go with you?' Theo asks, his eye brow rising too. Arsenio nods and leads Theo to the opposite end of the common room, to the couch over in the dark damp corner. 'Fine, bye Mione.' He winks at me before heading off with Arsenio.

With one last retreating look at them, I turn my attention back to the common room, not knowing what to do. Pansy and Astoria look up from their conversation and gesture me over to talk to them. I smile and walk over to them. 'Hey guys. What were you guys giggling about earlier?'

That sends them back into their fit of laughter. 'Oh, nothing. We were just laughing about,' Pansy cuts off, her laughter cutting her short.

'Aw come on, you can tell me!' I beg, smiling.

They both calm down enough to look at me in the eye. 'No, we can't. It's, it's about your brothers.' Astoria says, earning a slap on the shoulder from Pansy.

'You're not supposed to tell her! She's related to them!' Pansy hisses in her ear. My eye brow rises, and my smirk grows on my face, as I bore my eyes into theirs feeling them squirm under my gaze. 'Ok fine!' she gives, her voice getting higher and squeakier. 'We'll tell you. Just, just promise not to tell your brothers ok?' she asks quietly, realizing that one of the brothers were still in the common room, and he was staring over at the three of us with a confident smirk on his face before turning back to Theo. 'Um… Astoria can go first.' Pansy volunteers Astoria who shoots her a nasty glance before turning back to me.

'I like Arsenio.' She whispers, her face burning bright red as she shoots nervous glances towards Arsenio's direction. It's lucky for her that he was engaged in his conversation with Theo, the serious questioning taking place on the other side of the common room. My mouth falls to the floor. I mean, I knew every time they saw each other they would flirt, but, for some reason, as much as I expected this, it still knocked the wind out of me. And it wasn't helping that I could hear the quiet voices of my brothers talking to each other, but I try my best to tone them out. I turn my head over to Pansy, already knowing where this is going, but I still want her to say it. I guess my eyes told her that, because I hear her sigh before she begins to speak.

'I guess I have to say it huh?' she asks me quietly. I raise my eye brows at her. 'I like Malik, I really really do.' She gushes, her blush reddening on her cheeks. This one, I didn't expect. I mean, she doesn't show it as much as Astoria did.

'W-wow.' I stutter, my gaze faltering, my eyes falling to the floor. 'Um… wow.' I say, at a loss for words.

'You aren't going to tell them are you?!' Astoria jumps to conclusion, her voice getting slightly hysterical.

'No! Of course not!' I calm her down, putting my hands on her shoulders, slightly forcing her to sit back down on the couch. 'But, I can find out how they think about you if you want me to.' I offer up, watching as their eyes light up.

'Would you?' Pansy asks eagerly, her elbows on her knees.

'Yeah, of course I will! I will once they're done with their conversations with Draco and Theo.' I tell them, reassuring them.

Their faces relax as they slump down in relief. 'Ok. So, what are they talking about with Draco and Theo?' Pansy asks, switching subjects.

'Oh! That… um…' I trail off, trying to find a reasonable explanation for they're doing. 'They're questioning Draco and Theo. They're trying to find out whom… who like me more.' I stutter out the last bit, catching a look of amusement on their faces.

'Are they now?' Astoria asks, with the trademark Slytherin smirk plastered on her flawless face. 'So, who do you hope like you more?' she asks mysteriously.

Her question catches me off guard, even though I should have expected this from either one of them. 'W-what?' I mumble.

Astoria smirk grows wider, but Pansy restates her friend's question. 'Who do you hope likes you more, Draco or Theo?'

'Um…. I really, I really don't know…' I trail off, avoiding eye contact with either one of them.

'Aw come on Hermione, you can tell us.' Astoria says with her tone completely different. Her tone was more comforting and more friend like, less Slytherin like.

I sigh deeply before giving in. 'Fine!' I say loudly before quieting my voice to a low whisper. 'Ok, I was kind of hoping that-'

**MALIK'S POV**

'So, can you tell me exactly what you're doing here, and why you dragged me away from Hermione?' Draco asks, with his eye brows hiding in his hair line, with his trademark Malfoy smirk plastered on his face. 'And, you're kinda freaking me out.'

I turn around to face Draco with my own trademark Snape smirk growing on my face. 'What? You scared?' I taunt him for no apparent reason. I mean, I haven't done anything to him, yet. 'I'm just here to ask you some questions.' I tell him as we enter what appears to be his dorm that he shares with Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle. _Come to think of it, I haven't seen Crabbe or Goyle around… _I think to myself before getting back to Draco.

'Ask me about what?' he asks, sitting down on his bed. He pauses a moment before looking back up at me. 'This is about Hermione isn't it?' he asks as if he already knows. If possible, his eye brows rise even higher.

'Yeah, pretty much.' I say, laughing. 'She's kind of torn.' I start, watching as his face morph into a look of concern.

'What? Why! Is something wrong?' He rants, jumping to his feet faster than any amounts of electricity could have. His face hardens, as his eyes harden to stone. 'It was that weasel bee isn't.' his tone flat.

I couldn't help it. I burst out laughing, clutching my aching stomach. 'N-no, t-that isn't w-what this is about.' I stutter out through my laughter. 'It's about you.' I pause, enjoying myself as his facial expression changes from confusion to anger and now back to confusion. 'And Theo.' I add, watching his face fall at the mention of Theo's name.

'What about him?' Draco asks, trying his best to keep the jealously out of his voice. Too bad I can already hear it.

I give in to his obvious desperation to know what's going on. 'She likes you both, but she knows that both of you like her, and she doesn't know who likes her more. But, you have to tone it down; she really doesn't want us to do this.' I tell him.

'Oh, ok.' He says, taking several deep breaths to calm himself down. 'So, I assume that's what you're here for.' He puts two and two together. 'Ok, ask away. I'm an open book.' He tells me.

_Now that I'm in here… I really don't know what the heck I'm supposed to ask him. Wow… now that I'm actually doing this, it's not really making any sense. _I think to myself. 'Actually, I really didn't plan what I was going to ask you… you know what, just hold on.' I tell him. **'Arsenio?' **I ask him.

**'Yeah?' **I hear him ask back.

**'Are things going as smoothly as you thought they would? Because I'm here with Draco, and I really can't think of a single question that wouldn't be written off as awkward.' **I tell him, sensing that he's having the same problem with Theo.

**'You know what, let's just go get Mione, and we can let them talk it out. I have no idea how to handle this.' **Arsenio tells me. I agree with him.

'Draco, come on. We're just going to talk this over with Hermione. Let's go get Arsenio.' I tell him, grabbing his wrist and helping him up. 'I really have no idea how the heck I'm supposed to handle this. I mean, I'm no Hermione.' I tell him, earning a smile from him.

'No you are not.' He agrees, laughing. We walk out of the boys' dormitories and walk over to Arsenio and Theo who met us on the other end of the hallway.

I smirk mirrors the one on my brother's face. 'So? No luck with you either?' he asks me, getting my answer with the shake of my head. 'Well, we didn't either. We both just sat there and joked with each other.' Arsenio confesses, giving Theo another high five, obviously hiding an inside joke the rest of us don't know about.

'So, are we just going to go talk to Hermione?' Draco asks, an edge of nervousness seeping through his voice.

'That's pretty much it.' I say, trying my best to keep my smirk down at Draco's obvious nervousness. 'Come on, she's over there with Pansy and Astoria.' I say, gesturing to my sister who was sitting on the couch with Pansy and Astoria, who were clearly enjoying their conversation, laughing loudly over something they were talking about. My brother and I head over to the three of them. It catches their attention, because my sister looks up in curiosity, but the other two look away, giggling madly. 'Um, Hermione? Can we talk to you?' I ask, hopping right to the point.

Hermione looks back at the other two girls who were giggling madly, as if to ask for their permission. Pansy waved her off with the flick of her wrist before returning back to Astoria. 'Ok, I'm coming.' She finally said, standing up off the couch, brushing herself off.

'Let's go then.' Arsenio speaks up. **'Sorry Mione, we kinda chickened out of doing this. Do you know how awkward it is to even mention you in conversations like that?! I've known Theo my whole life and I really can't bring up the nerve to mention his feelings for you, even if he did bring it up himself.' **My brother apologizes, getting to his point before I got to mine.

**'I agree. I don't think I could have kept a straight face during that conversation. So, Arsenio and I silently agreed to just let them talk to you.' **I add, feeling my sister's slight relief.

**'Thank you! Finally coming to your senses I see.' **She laughs, eyeing both of us with a superior gleam in her eyes. **'I told **_**both **_**of you that this whole thing wasn't necessary. But who wanted to go through with it?' **she asks, cupping her fingers around her ear, waiting for either me or Arsenio to say it. The smirk on her face and the mischievous glint in her eyes told us she already knew the answer; that she just wanted to hear it. But of course I already knew that.

**'We did…' **I mumble, letting her get the satisfaction she so obviously craved.

I hear her sigh in satisfaction. She then turns away from my and Arsenio and faces Draco and Theo, who must of guessed we were talking to each other by the way our faces changed without a single word being uttered. 'So? Where are we going?' She asks them, catching them by surprise.

'Oh, I'm not sure… we just followed your brothers. I thought they had this whole thing planned out.' Draco admits, shrugging his shoulders.

Hermione's faces turns confused. 'Oh, so did I.' she agrees, turning back to me. 'So? Where are we going Malik?' she asks curiously.

Crap. I should have known she was going to ask that. I turn helplessly to Arsenio, who shrugs in reply. 'Let's go to the lake.' I declare, thinking of the place where we would normally hang out anyway. Hermione nods in agreement and leads the way; only she is a couple paces ahead, and walking as if she's minding her own business. We follow her lead. The four of us fall behind and paint arrogant looks on our faces as we strut down the hallway.

**'This should be good.' **Arsenio mentions lightly as he shoves a first year Hufflepuff out of his way by knocking him to the floor. 

** 'But what are we supposed to do? You know, during this whole tangible awkward moment that's about to unfold?' **I ask him, smirking maliciously at the first year whimpering on the cold stone floor in front of Arsenio's feet.

**'No idea. We'll just improvise. And if worse comes to worse, we can always just leave, or go train. Besides, we're supposed to train together today anyway. Hopefully Brock, Ivory, or Marc will come to the rescue.' **Arsenio puts in hopefully.

Draco and Theo must have picked up on our appearance, for they too began to act the way they normally do, striding ahead of my brother and I to take the lead, glaring arrogantly at anyone who past and made eye contact with either one of them. 'Um, hey geniuses that are leading this operation, what the hell are we supposed to talk about?' Draco asks, dropping his voice low so no one else could hear him.

'Beats me. If you don't want to talk about _that _subject then just pretend none of that ever happened and talk to her like you normally would.' Arsenio tells them, dropping his voice as well.

'Yeah, and if it gets too awkward, Ars and I are leaving.' I add, joking. But the horror on their faces told me they didn't exactly take that the right way.

'NO no no no no no! Please no!' Theo pleads, his voice cracking. His heads jerks around wildly to make sure no one heard him. His face hardens as he sees stunned faces stare at him. 'What are you looking at? Keep walking!' He barks, glaring harshly at the students before they turn back to their personal conversations.

'I agree, please don't leave! There needs to be some sort of relief, or at least some way to defuse the tension.' Draco says, unable to form any sort of reasonable explanation, but I understand nonetheless. And by the look on Arsenio's face and the way he was nodding his head, he understands as well.

'Ok, we won't leave, but we're not telling you anything.' Arsenio agrees, but not without making them sweat first. That's just something we Snape's have to do. That's how we got our entertainment.

That caught their attention. 'You know something?! What do you know? Is it about her feelings for us? Which one does she like more?' Theo spits out in a frantic rant, trying to pry something out of us, but with no avail, he got nothing. Obviously, Draco wanted to know something as well. Both of them stop walking to turn and face us, Draco's stormy gray eyes and Theo's pitch black eyes staring into our eyes.

'Let us bring you up to speed.' Arsenio starts.

'We know nothing.' I add, feeling the smirk grow on my face as I see their faces drop with regret.

'Now you are up to speed.' Arsenio finishes, his smirk growing to an identical length to mine.

Their faces drop from _We're not telling you anything _to _We know nothing. _'Really?' Theo asks, his voice sounding slightly depressed. The gleam of excitement disappeared from his eyes. Draco's face mimicked his.

'Sorry guys.' I shrug, lifting my arms up in mock innocence. 'Come on, Hermione is getting away. Let's go.' I say, waving my hand for them to follow me as I break into a light jog. Hermione disappeared out of sight, so I suppose that means that she's already at the lake.

Breaking into the light jog, we reach the lake and the willow tree in no time at all. We skid across the grass, almost running into each other in order to break our run. She's just relaxing on the rock where she always sits, with her back against the tree as she reads a book I didn't see her carry with her.

Theo's uneasy face immediately breaks into a warm smile before he walks ahead of us and sits down next to Hermione and wraps his arm around her shoulder, as if it's second nature to him. My head turns to Draco, who looks overcome with jealously. But I can tell that he's trying hard not to let it show. Feeling bad for him, I walk over to him and place my hand on his shoulder. 'If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it would work out between them either.' I try and comfort him.

Arsenio walks over to him and tries to console him too. 'I think they're more like best friend material anyway.' He adds, unsure that he used the rights words.

He was right to be unsure. Horror spreads its way across Draco's face. 'That doesn't make it any better… best friends always become a couple, and then that leads straight to marriage.' He mutters, looking close to tears. He sulks over to Hermione and sits next to the rock, and stares out to the water.

**'Way to go.' **I mutter to Arsenio, who shrugs hopelessly at me. The both of us walk over to rock at sit in front of Hermione. And to be completely truthful, I have no idea how this whole thing is going to go over.

**HERMIONE'S POV**

I beat my brothers, Theo, and Draco here. Funny, I thought they were right behind me. I remember hearing their footsteps echo behind mine as we walked in the hallway. I suppose they just got sidetracked or something. Turning my head over my shoulder, I check to see if they're behind me. Once I'm positive that they aren't behind me, and that they aren't hiding to prank me later on, I turn back around and walk towards the willow tree. I gently push the delicate leaves out of the way and disappear behind the nimble branches. With my wand in hand, I take a shrunken down copy of _Supernatural Occurrences in Wizarding Families _and enlarge it to normal size. I always carry it with me just in case I have some alone time to read, and since I have a reputation for being a book work, no one questions my motives for reading it. And besides, it's not like anyone can see me behind the thick leafy foliage anyway. Taking a seat on the rather large rock, I relax my back onto the smooth bark of the willow tree and open my book to where I left off at, and begin reading.

_In most cases, the unnatural possession of unusual powers is just by luck, something that happens by chance. Some wizards are born with certain powers, such as possessing the power to read minds, or being able to communicate with animals or other magical creatures. But in the rare cases, certain wizards are born with special powers because of a certain role they were given to play in life. There are not many cases of this, but in the case that triplets are born, there are entirely different circumstances. _

_ De Kracht van Dire, or more commonly referred to as the "Supernatural Triplets or Paranormal Triplets" are three siblings of a wizarding family that have been reincarnated after the death of the previous ones. However, the powers of each triplet change with each passing generation along with the personality of each triplet. _

'Hermione, we're here!' I hear a voice say rather loudly, ripping me from my book. My head jerks up to the sound and I am greeted with the smiling faces of Draco, Theo, and my twin brothers. 'Yeah yeah, what took you so long?' I ask them, feeling slightly irritated that it took so long, and for the fact that they ripped me from my book.

'Eh, no idea. We had to keep our images up in public.' Draco answers, immediately taking Theo's seat next to me and wrapping his arm around me. With a heavy sigh, Theo takes the other side while my brothers sit on the grass in front of us.

Sitting in comfortable silence, we just relax against the tree until Theo lets out a long sigh and turns to face me. 'Hermione, can I talk to you? Can I tell you something?' he asks, rephrasing his question with a sincere look on his face, catching my attention.

'Sure, Theo.' I mutter unsurely. I turn to face him, turning out of Draco's grip much to his discontent, but I ignored his incoherent slurs and focused my attention to Theo, who looked like his heart was about to snap in half. 'What's on your mind?' I ask as politely as I can, not wanting to upset him even further, even though I don't even know what he's upset about.

'I, I just wanted to tell you something, that I know has been bothering the both of us.' He begins, propping himself up on the rock so it would be easier to talk. 'Me… and him…' he states awkwardly, pointing to Draco who wore a surprised look on his face, accompanied by the look of interest that was not present before.

My head whips around to my brothers, who were obviously trying their best to look innocent, holding their hands up in mock surrender. **'You told him, didn't you.' **I state, raising my eyebrows at the two of them accusingly. The only answer I receive is the surrender pose from the both of them before I turn back to Theo.

'Oh…. Theo…' I begin, but he cuts me off.

He holds his finger up, silencing my words. 'Please, don't say anything yet, ok? Trust me; I don't think this is going to be as bad for you as it is going to be for me.' His statement catches me by surprise, and I catch on immediately to what he's trying to tell me, but I let him continue anyway. 'I know I haven't been making your life any easier, and I actually may be overreacting, but… I've decided to step out of your way.' He says vaguely.

'Step out… well, I guess I meant step out of Draco's way.' He tries to clarify, but he still remains too vague for my understanding.

**'Hermione, I swear, sometimes you are the dimmest person I know. I thought you caught one to what he was trying to telling you,' **Arsenio states laughing out loud, causing Draco and Theo to look at him funnily.

**'What are you talking about?' **I ask them back, not liking the feeling of being dim.

**'He's stepping out of Draco's way so he can be with you.' **Malik says simply.

The idea strikes me by surprise. _What? Why would Theo do that…? I wonder if it was something I said. Hermione snap out of it! You should be glad! It's not like you're losing him! _I reason with myself. I turn back to Theo and smile slightly at him. 'Theo, are you sure?' I ask him, just to make sure he's not doing something that's going to destroy him inside. I ignore the angry sighs from Draco.

He pauses for a moment, as if he's pondering his own decision, but he nods solemnly. 'Yeah, I'm sure. I mean, everyone can see the way that he looks at you. It's the same way I look at you and the same way you look at him, but not at me.' He tells me, his smile faltering just a bit before he regains his confidence. 'I just want you to be happy, but if you being happy isn't with me, then so be it. I'm just glad you're in love with my best mate.' He says, winking at me.

'Thank you Theo, I… I can't tell you what this means to me…' I trail off, finding tears pooling in my eyes. I lean over to hug him, which he graciously accepts and returns.

'I can't tell you what it means to me either.' Draco speaks up, leaning forward to face Theo.

Looking up over my shoulder, Theo leans forward out of my embrace to face him. 'Really, it did?' he asks curiously.

'Well, I… I've been… I've been torn whether or not I should break our friendship over Hermione or not, but, well, thanks mate.' Draco says clumsily, fumbling with his words.

Theo laughs heartily and slaps Draco on the shoulder good-naturedly. 'Relax mate. You don't need to explain yourself. I understand how you feel, and if what's best for Mione's isn't with me, I'm glad it's with you.' Theo says, making me feel extremely awkward all of a sudden, which also went noticed by my brothers, who burst out laughing spontaneously, causing Draco and Theo to give them slightly bewildered glances.

'Oh…' they both mutter, realizing that they must have felt something from me. 'Feeling awkward yet Mione,' Draco laughs, letting his arm return to its place on my shoulder.

'Just a tad…' I respond back quietly, baffled, not knowing how to respond to that, to anything they said. Draco smiled reassuringly.

'Ah relax its fine. But, now, I've got you all to myself, almost.' He adds on quickly, noting the raise of my eyebrow. But his attention was then distracted, as he looked over my shoulder. 'Hey, um, I think someone is here to see you three…' he trails off, pointing through a narrow hole in the thick foliage to reveal Ivory, Brock, and Marc heading towards the tree.

**'Um… how in the world did they know where to find us?!' **I ask ludicrously to my brothers, who shared the same bewildered look I possessed.

**'Beats me, I didn't say anything. Did you Ars?' **Malik asks, shrugging his shoulders while looking questioningly at Arsenio.

**'Hey, don't point your fingers at me; I didn't say a word to Brock.' **Arsenio defends himself, sending defensive gleaming looks at the both of us.

But before either one of us had time to reply anything, the branches swayed, then began to part, leaving an archway to where we sat, revealing our masters smiling warmly down on us. 'Mione, Malik, Arsenio, time to practice.' Ivory interrupts, trying to make her voice sound apologetic; too bad it didn't come across that way. She knew what she just walked into.

'Oh, alright, see you guys later.' I say awkwardly, standing up to brush myself off. My brothers echo my farewell as our masters lead us towards the practice grounds, inside the Forbidden Forest, to begin step two of our road to destiny.

**A/N: I'm just disappointing everyone aren't I? I am SO sorry… this chapter was supposed to be longer, but I thought I would ease the anger… hoping some of you will forgive me. :/ Again, sorry about the super long wait in the past, and in the present. (Now… since school cut out my social life) **

**I'll see you guys later? Maybe?**

**Hey, you wanna hear something funny? Review me maybe? Get it? Huh? Do you? I know, that was lame. :P But still, review? Please? **

**Thanks! **

**~Prongs97**


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: Nothing has changed since the last year I saw you, I still own nothing of Harry Potter, and all rights go to Mrs. J.K Rowling. ;) And as for the rest of the disclaimers, check out my page that has probably been collecting dust…**

**A/N: Hi everybody, I'm Prongs, I don't think we've met before. Oh, we have? Oh… awkward… So, here I am! Back from the dead! I don't recommend going there, rather dark and smelly if you ask me! So, I know probably more than half of you are going to skip over this author's note completely, but I really wanted to thank everyone for sticking with me. And a special thanks to "KaylaWolf7621" for yelling at me for not writing. You can all send your thanks to her, because she's the one that got me writing again. SO, in epic conclusion, I am dedicating THIS particularly long chapter to her. (: Just, one quick little warning for this chapter… ***IMPORTANT*** Since I haven't written in this story for a long time, my writing style has changed since then, and I have slightly lost touch with the characteristics of everybody, so you're going to have to bear with me while I find my rhythm again. **

**So, that's all I have to say here, I hope you all enjoy the latest installment! Enjoy! **

Life as a Snape: Chapter 30

'Does this mean I finally get to learn to fight with water?' Arsenio bursts out, unable to contain his obvious excitement and enthusiasm once we leave our friends behind us, as the deep green foliage of the nearby trees surrounds us.

Brock emits a heavy but goodhearted sigh, for he must have heard this excitement countless times before. 'Yes, yes it is. It's _finally _time for you to train with your sister.' He emphasizes his sentence as if he were mocking Arsenio, which he was.

**'Mate, Brock's tone makes it seem as if he's heard this a thousand times.' ** I comment, causing my brother to shoot an annoyed glance at me.

**'Probably because he has heard it a thousand times.' **Malik cuts in, wearing an identically amused expression that mirrored my own.

'You have no idea…' Brock stops and smirks all omnisciently, as if he guessed what we were talking about. Raising our eyebrows, my brothers and I give the same look to Brock, who begins to laugh at the three of us. 'Trust me, I know a little more than you think about your connection.' He says with a humorous tone, but there was an edge of mystery added in.

**'Ah don't think anything of him he does that to me all the time.' **Arsenio muses, laughing lightly before turning back to his master. 'So, are we going to get started?' He asks excitedly.

'Yeah, we're going to get started, but first, Malik, your masters are here to work with you privately. We will call you back in when your siblings are ready to fight.' Brock muses, smirking wildly.

'Oh sounds like fun…' Malik says with a fake sense of glee. 'Please don't beat each other up too badly, there's no guarantee that I'll be able to fix you once you're done.' He jokes slightly before walking off to join his masters.

Once Malik disappears from sight, our two masters turn to us. 'So, Arsenio, ready to learn to fight with the elements?' Ivory asks smiling at my brother.

'I've been waiting ever since I figured out the power I could possess when you told me a week ago!' Arsenio joked. 'So, how are we going to go about doing this?' He asks curiously. 'How did you learn?' my brother asks, turning to me.

'Well I-'

'She learned through tedious training and meditating. Bending the elements takes a great deal of concentration, and your mind cannot be scatterbrained, or else there could be some pretty catastrophic results.' Ivory jokes, but adding in a small warning as well.

'Oh…' Arsenio trails off, sounding slightly disappointed. 'I guess this is going to be harder than I thought….' He states, looking down at the ground.

'Don't worry Ars, you'll be fine. It just takes a lot of discipline and hard work.' I reassure him. 'I can almost promise you that you'll get it.'

'Almost promise me?' He jokes, raising my eyebrow at me in a questioning manner, catching the fault in my reassurance.

'No! I meant you will get it! I'm sorry I didn't mean for it to sound that way!' I gasp in exasperation, finally realizing what I actually said. 'Oh, could we just get started with the training already?' I ask, turning back to our masters.

'Of course. Alright, Hermione, I want you and your brother to go over there, by the river and do some silent meditating, show him how to do it. Brock and I need to discuss how we're going to teach Arsenio how to do this. And plus, once he gets the first element down, he won't need as much assistance learning the others.' Ivory says, departing with Brock, leaving us to go meditate by the river.

'Aw meditate, really?' Arsenio complains, stomping his foot like a spoiled little child. 'I don't want to sit and meditate for an hour! I just want to learn how to fight with water!' He says, his eyes lighting up at the utterance of fighting with water.

'First off, they never said that we had to meditate for an hour.' I laugh, as the two of us begin to walk over towards the river. 'And water bending isn't the element that requires the most concentration; Ivory told me that's air bending.' I contradict, taking a seat on the grass.

'Oh gee, thanks for the vote of confidence.' Arsenio sneers lightheartedly, taking a seat next to me. 'So, oh great guru of meditation, how do I do this? Just sit here and breathe?' he asks me, raising his eyebrow again.

'Not quite…' I start, laughing. 'From what Ivory told me, meditation is a temporary way to leave behind all earthly possessions and your earthly being to find mental peace.' I tell him, as I cross my legs in that whole criss cross applesauce style. 'You let all thoughts escape, leaving behind only involuntary motions.'

'So, I'm just sitting here then…' He states simply, rolling his eyes at my drawn out explanation. 'Sitting here, and breathing…' He says again, closing in his eyes in an over dramatic manner. 'I'm just going to sit still and not think about anything until they come back to retrieve us.'

'No! That's not what I said at all!' I exclaim, slapping my brother over the shoulder, causing his eyebrow to rise further above his hairline, almost disappearing behind it, knowing that he was completely right. 'Ok fine you were right.' I give, my unamused face returning. 'But for the record, this does have significance behind it.' I promise him, before closing my own eyes.

'Breath in, breath out…' I instruct myself, making sure that I was the only one who could hear my thoughts by closing myself off. 'Leave behind your body, find somewhere else to go, let your mind do the traveling as your body lays still.' I recite the exact lines Ivory taught me when she first became my master. I take another deep breath, making sure it fills all available space as I let my astral mind float off into some distant, peaceful land. But I can feel another presence, another soul following mine. Actually, I can feel a lot of different souls, but a powerful one makes the biggest impression on me, Arsenio. **'Are you following me?' **I ask my brother calmly, smirking because I think he didn't want me to know that he was following me.

**'Maybe…' **he says rather childishly. **'Ok, I'm in my astral form, now can we please go back to our physical bodies so my physical form can manipulate some dihydrogen oxide?' **He begs, his emotional soul catching up to mine, tugging at my arm.

'I suppose so…' I whisper, my mind back in my physical body. Standing up shakily, I walk over to my brother and shake his shoulders, waking him from his out of body experience. 'Come on, they should be waiting for us back in the bald spot in the forest.'

It doesn't take much to get him up off the ground, although his stance was slightly clumsy due to the return to his physical body, but he soon gets over it, a grin reappearing on his face. 'So, can you go ahead and give me an intro to this?' he asks, fluttering his eye lashes in the most unappealing way possible, earning a laugh out of me.

'No, but Ivory will.' I laugh, grabbing hold of his wrist, causing him to pick up his pace. 'You're going to just _love _working with her! She makes everything easy to understand, and she's a great listener, not to mention she gives _great _advice.'

'Mione, Mione,' Arsenio cuts me off by putting a finger over my lips, efficiently silencing me. 'You're rambling again.' He laughs, understanding me perfectly.

But luckily my rambling distracts him from asking anymore questions. In no time at all, we reach the bald spot in the forest where Ivory, Brock, and Malik were waiting for us. **'Hey where did your healers go?' **I ask Malik, seeing he was standing alone with his back up against a tree.

**'They left.' **He informs us, looking up from whatever he was working on. **'They wanted to see if I could handle your fatal wounds on my own.' **He smirks back at us, standing up to greet us. 'So, how was the meditating?' he teases, focusing his gaze towards his brother.

'Torturous.' The twin answers, sending his smirk towards me. 'I don't understand how people find that relaxing in any shape or form. It did clear my mind though, of any thought.' He jokes, nudging me in the side.

'Ah stuff it.' I say, nudging him back. 'Are you ready?' I ask him afterwards.

'Let's hope you are. ' Someone speaks up from behind us, interrupting our sibling conversation. Walking up to us, Ivory and Brock make their way up to us. 'I hope you're up for the challenge.' Ivory says, walking up to my brother, putting a hand on his shoulder.

**'Psh, piece of pumpkin pastry.' **Arsenio tells us, smirking wildly at his siblings.

'This isn't going to be easy.' Brock warns, walking over to his student. 'Ivory here was just telling me how difficult elemental control is, so let's hope you took that meditating seriously.' He adds on, winking mysteriously at us. 'So! Let's get started!' he says cheekily, clapping his hands together.

'I'm just gonna go back over there and enjoy the view.' Malik says with a tone of sick enjoyment not so hidden in his voice. He walks back over to the tree he was relaxing by and sits down; resuming whatever work he was doing beforehand.

**'Question, what are you doing?' **Arsenio asks, turning towards his brother.

**'Research for the third task I hope.' **I cut off whatever response he was going to give, raising my eyebrow expectantly at him.

Eyes widening, Malik begins to nod furiously. **'I'm getting right on that Mione.' **He rushes, bolting up towards the grand castle. **'Bullocks, what was it that I should have been researching?' **he asks halfway towards the castle.

**'Previous tournaments and tasks involved, what previous champions used and what their tactics were, magical creatures and the dangers accompany them , researching potions wouldn't be a bad subject to brush up on either. And perhaps dueling spells and one on one fighting skills and protective spells, and you know memorizing star charts wouldn't hurt either-'**

** 'Mione shut it.' **Arsenio snaps, cutting me off mid-rant. **'You're giving us both a headache.' **He says, addressing me with an annoyed gleam in his eyes. **'Malik, I would just read up on everything possible. But in my opinion, previous tasks and dueling spells would probably be the best way to invest your time.' **He informs his brother, waving him off impatiently. Malik responds with an identical wave, and then takes off again towards the school library.

'Are you done talking now?' Brock asks, laughing slightly. He walks over to Arsenio and waves his hand in front of his face frantically and in an overdramatic fashion. This action jerks both Arsenio and I back into reality. 'Ok, now that's I've got you two back on planet Earth, care to get started?' he asks once again, a lopsided amused smile plastered on his face.

An enthusiastic nod from my twin is his response. 'Alright, let's get started!' Ivory says happily, sizing up her situation. 'Ok, what has Hermione told you?' she asks, getting a basis of his knowledge.

'Absolutely nothing.' Arsenio says immediately, before I get the chance to say anything. 'She only told me that it requires concentration, and… that's about it.' He wraps up, sending a bemused smirk in my direction, which is not so warmly met with my own aggravated face.

'He's the one that wouldn't let me get a word in…' I mumble under my breath, crossing my arms.

'Oh get over yourself Hermione.' Ivory laughs. 'There's no problem with your brother not knowing anything.' She winks, poking fun at my brother. A smile spreads across my face, an insult for an insult. But before my brother can get one word in, Ivory begins. 'Alright Arsenio, I just need to go over a few basic concepts with you before we get started.' She introduces, taking a seat on the ground. The remaining three of us take our seats as well.

**'Damn, and to think I could get through this lesson without learning anything educational. How ridiculous of me.' **Arsenio says, rolling his eyes.

'Oh relax Arsenio,' Brock laughs, his eyes gleaming in amusement. 'The only information she's going to tell you are what the element basically is and what type of fighting style it covers.' He reassures his student, successfully calming him down. 'And lucky for you, I already taught you the basics of all fighting styles.' He says, adding in a small wink of pleasure.

'Wow Brock, impressive.' Ivory applauds, her expression of impression made up purely of sarcasm and disbelief. 'Since you think you obviously know so much about the topic, why not you brief him about it?' the water master suggests with an all knowing smile on her face.

'Alright.' Brock agrees. 'All you need to know is that the art of fighting with water is based off the fighting style of Tai chi.' He says simply. 'Since I already went over the basics with you, you can just watch a quick spar between Ivory and your sister just so you can watch them battle it out with water.' He suggests, looking over to the other master for approval, which he doesn't receive.

Her brow wrinkles in disapproval as she crosses her arms, glowering at the male master standing before her. 'No, he needs to know more than that.' She scolds. Turning to her own student, she asks the same from Hermione. 'How about you go over the basics with your brother?'

'The art of fighting with water is based off the ancient Chinese martial arts form of T' ai chi ch'uan, or Tai Chi for short.' I recite immediately, feeling my hours off studying regurgitating. 'The main studies of the art are based off of health, the martial art itself, and meditation. Health involves the physical and mental state of a person. Both must be harmonious with its surroundings in order to effectively master the art form. That's where the meditation comes it. Meditation is used to calm the mind-'

'Hermione!' Arsenio screams, plugging his ears shut, his eyes squeezing shut as well. 'No offense, but she said go over the _basics, _not bore everyone in earshot to tears!' he shouts, his annoyance peaking. 'Now, is there anything worthwhile knowing?' my brother asks once he had calmed down.

'Yes, despite the fact that all of that was _worthwhile, _I guess there is one thing that you would need to know.' I say sheepishly, crossing my arms in identical annoyance. 'Although tai chi is a martial arts form, it's a form of self-defense that requires the study of change appropriate to outside forces rather than try and fight the opponent with an opposing force.' I tell him, silently asking for his approval.

But instead of giving me a thumbs up, his eyes widen in information overload. 'Brock?' he asks, using his eyes to beg his mentor for a translation.

'What she means that tai chi is used for defense.' Brock translates, sending a wink in my direction.

'That's basically what I said…' I mumble.

'Alright, you think you got it?' Ivory asks my brother. Responding with an enthusiastic nod, Ivory continues. 'Alright, I want you and your sister to go and stand by that river over there.' Ivory says, pointing to a gently flowing stream just to the right of the bald spot.

The four of us walk over to the stream and I lead my brother over the water's edge. 'Alright Arsenio. Now, I want you to close your eyes.' Ivory begins. Looking over towards my brother, I see him close his eyes, fully engaged in his instructions. I decide to help my brother by being the example. I too close my eyes and wait for my master to continue. 'I want you to focus on every single water molecule flowing in front of you, listen to the gentle whispers of the creek, and imagine the cool liquid flowing through your fingertips.' She instructs.

As for myself, I can feel the water begin to flow through by body as I breathe in and out. I let the natural ebb and flow control my every body movement. Here, at this stage in concentration, I begin to feel the supernatural energy break free of its reservoir. I let my mind wander free, letting it touch all the life around me, connecting to it, from all the trees surrounding me to the relaxed nature of the birds. Making a full circle, my mind begins feeling the presence of my twin brother next to me.

But his presence is much darker than the other energy around me. His is aura is much darker than energy surrounding me. Out of all the emotions I can sense radiating off of him; frustration and aggravation seem to stand out the most, to me at least. I know I'm not supposed to disrupt him while this training is going on, but I try and reach out to him anyway, hoping it doesn't completely shatter his concentration. **'Hey, Ars?' **I ask him quietly, still maintaining focus on the matter at hand while trying to get his attention.

**'What?' **He snaps back at me, his body tensing up due to the interruption of his focus.

**'Hey come on, what's wrong?' **I ask, letting my own body relax slightly.

**'Everything is wrong!' **He screams back at me, his mental glare piercing my gaze. **'I can't do this, and I've only been trying for a whole five minutes! It is **_**impossible **_**for me to concentrate on this nonsense. Focus on every single damn water molecule in the damn creek? Talk about a mink fuck. And I don't understand how that's supposed to help me at all.' **He spits bitterly at me

**'Hey relax,' **I tell him. **'Both our mentors told us this wasn't going to be an easy thing to accomplish. And this is your first try. And besides, maybe you don't learn this way.' **I say, trying to think of another way to possibly put the instructions.

But this proves difficult for me because I learned under the same instructions that we were being given now. I did get it the first day, only because granted I spent over five hours sitting at this same creek by myself, forcing myself to feel the energy. And then, almost as if struck by lightning, it came to me. **'Hey, maybe we can ask Brock to give you some instructions you'll understand.' **I suggest.

**'Do what you want.' **He responds bitterly. **'It's not like learning how to fight with these damned elements is going to improve my life style at all.' **He adds on just as corrosively.

His comment enraging me slightly, I try and think of something to say back to him, possibly something to make him see the light in learning this. But someone else's voice interrupts. **'Hey come on Ars, this is important.' **I voice identical to Arsenio speaks up inside our minds. **'You heard the prophecy. We have to be completely one hundred percent ready for whatever comes our way.' **Malik says seriously.

** 'Being in this tournament really did things to you.' **Arsenio says grumpily, knowing his brother is completely right. **'I'll keep trying, but the longer I think about the damn water in front of me the more I crave to do something else.' **He fires back, feeling our brother pull back out of our conversation.

'Hey, Brock?' I suddenly ask, pulling out of my previous mental conversation with my brothers. The young brown haired mentor turns in my direction, letting me know I have his attention. 'Do you think you can try something else? I, I want to hear your take on this training.' I lie, sending a look towards my brother, sensing his relief.

A happy smile spreads across his face. 'Of course.' He says excitedly. 'Alright, just let me think a minute.' He requests, putting a hand on his chin, stroking it thoughtfully. He snaps his fingers, his eyes lighting up in enlightenment. 'I got it.' He walks over to the two of us, and positions himself in between us. 'Ok, Mione, Arsenio, I want you to imagine yourself as some sort of aquatic mammal or something.' He begins.

Ah, that must be what he learns off of, physical beings, imagining himself fully immersed, as something that lives in that environment twenty four seven. Although his method or learning style is still completely foreign to me, I try and follow along to the best of my ability. 'You're swimming, and swimming and you can feel every inch of your scales being touched by this water. You're a fish, swimming through this river.' He starts, making motions with his hands representing that of a fish.

And although his instructions further confuse me, I try and keep in mind Ivory's original instructions. _Concentrate on the ebb and flow of the water; imagine it flowing between your fingertips. _But in my success, I can feel energy that doesn't belong to me flow into my mind; Arsenio's.

'Good.' Brock approves, nodding in approval. 'Now, I want you to raise your hands over the river. Breathe in and out, and curl your fingers ever so slightly.' Brock instructs. 'Your fingers, imagine them as your fins. Pretend they're closed, and you can move huge amounts of water with them.' He continues, adding in his aquatic imagery. 'Now, tense your fingers just a little more, good, now, raise your hands.' Brock instructs.

Raising my own hands, I open my eyes, and watch the trail of snakelike water follow my hands upward, obeying my tacit commands. I look over towards my left, and see my brother's hands, dictating their own water snake. **'Ars, open your eyes.' **I tell him softly. And ever so slowly, one eye at a time, my brother opens his eyes. And once they are, they spread even wider open, mimicking that of an innocent deer caught in dangers path. But his expression wasn't that of danger, it was a look of excitement, pure ecstatic excitement.

'Now, relax your fingers.' Brock instructs, running his fingers over his students, uncurling them ever so slightly, the muscles in his fingers relaxing. 'Good.' He says, his tone impressed.

As if caught in his own wondrous trance, he continues to raise his hands higher, allowing the water to flow with it. Once his hands reach his own eye level, he begins to contort his hands, morphing this snake into a floating ball of water. And a twisted grin spreads across his face, as he makes the orb tighter. Once it's to his liking, he moves it to the center of his body, holding it with invisible strings. Then, in one swift movement, he lashes out, sending the ball of water flying away from him, straight towards me.

And without the proper time to react, his projectile hits me straight in the chest, successfully soaking my entire front side, including my face. My eyes shut tight and my mouth wide open, I whip my hands in two separate directions, trying feebly to shake the water off my body. 'Oh, you are _so _asking for it!' I scream, turning my attention towards stream. I throw my leg up, sending up a stream of water following it. Kicking my leg further up, flipping, and my whip like water gaining momentum as I fling it up and over my body, sending it straight towards my brother's chest, right where he hit me.

The force of my attack knocks him off his feet, causing him to land flat on his back. A satisfied smirk paints itself across my face, knowing that he can't fully fight back yet because he just learned how to control water, so I don't let my attack decrease in strength or intensity. Using both my hands, I control a much thicker whip flinging it over my head, drowning my brother with a force that must have felt like a tidal wave; I would know, his astonishment to the force of my attack hit me like my own personal tidal wave. My smirk gives way to showing my teeth as the glint in my eyes gathers more merciless ideas. Using my hands to form to more whips, I begin motion my hands into a swirling motion, imitating that of a whirlpool, which is exactly what I form, and a flattened whirlpool. And with one last final surge of power, I hurdle my disc like thing straight for my brother, successfully knocking him flat on his back, all of his energy gone.. Landing forcefully next to his body, I let the smirk slightly slide off my face, letting it be replaced by a satisfied smile. '_That _is how it's done.' I say to my brother, somehow managing to keep the trademark smirk off my face.

'I am hurt…' he mumbles, letting a smile slip onto his face. He lifts his hand up, his eyes shut in attempt to relax his mind. Laughing I grab his hand and give him a lift up. He manages to get on his feet, and brushes himself off. 'Hey, world class wizards, care to dry us off?' he asks, spreading himself out like a bird.

And for some reason, both the masters turn to each other, share a small laugh, and whip out their wands. Walking over to us, they silently cast a drying spell, waving their wands over our bodies. 'Nicely done Hermione.' Brock says, turning to me with a smile. 'But you could have gone a tad bit easier on your poor brother.' He laughs, putting a benevolent hand on my brother's shoulder, painting a guise of sympathy on his face.

'Nah, he'll live.' I reassure, flashing a smile towards my brother, which is quickly met with a childish flash of his tongue. 'Now, what's next?' I ask, alternating my gaze between both of the wise masters standing before my brother and me.

'Actually, nothing.' Ivory admits, smiling sadly at me. 'Since Arsenio basically knows what he's doing, you can be the one to teach him what he needs to know. My work here is done.' She tells me.

'What do you mean your work here is done?' my twin and I both exclaim in unison. 'You're leaving?' Arsenio says, turning to Brock with his own pair of saddened eyes. 'You can't be leaving I thought we still had a lot to go over, we still have so much to do!' he cries out, his eyes glossing over.

'No no!' Brock says, frantically waving his hands back and forth. 'I'm not the one that's leaving.' He says, sending a quick look towards Ivory, he adds another comment on. 'Ivory is the one leaving.' He sighs.

I feel my heart sink ever so slightly. 'You're… leaving?' I whisper, tearing up. 'Why?'

Ivory smiles sadly and puts a kind hand on my shoulder. 'Yeah, I am leaving.' She responds. 'It's about time you move on with your training with your other teachers. You passed your water exam in my eyes, so I don't believe you need me anymore. I'll drop by every now and then to show you some new moves and give you advice and tips, but from now on, you will begin your air manipulation training with Lucca Rowen the air elemental.' She tells me. 'It's been great working with you Hermione, really.' She says sincerely. She closes the distance between her and I and engulfs me within her arms, 'I wish you the best of luck in the journey ahead of you.' She whisper in my ear. With one last squeeze, she releases me, and walks off back towards the castle. 'Good luck Hermione, you too Arsenio, I'll see you soon!' And with that, she disappears inside the castle.

'I got to get going too, I've actually got a lot I've got to be doing, starting with our normal conference with Professor Dumbledore.' Brock says, beginning his trek up to the castle. 'You two can train as you please, I'll see you two later.' He says, waving us off. And with that, he sprints towards the castle, and disappears out of sight.

'I. Kicked. Your. Arse.' I punctuate, bursting out into laughter once more, doubling over. 'Come on, I'm sure Malik would want to know about this!' I say, grabbing his wrist.

'No he wouldn't, he's been connected to us this whole time,' Arsenio laughs. 'And he's probably been cringing every moment you decided to maim me.' He jokes, rubbing on of his sore spots on his arm. 'You better hope you didn't break something on me, or else that pain would carry over to him and he won't perform as well in the third task tomorrow.' He says, his eyes glossing over mysteriously.

Where his eyes narrow, mine grow larger at the realization. 'Oh sweet Merlin you're right! Malik has his third task tomorrow!' I scream, whipping around to face my brother. 'I promised him that we would meet him in the library after we finished training! Come on we got to go! I don't want him to think we've forgotten about him!' I say, tugging on my brother's wrist harder. 'Come on why aren't you moving you great oaf?' I scold him, tugging harder.

'Uhh hey Merlin?' He asks, getting my attention as he raises his eyebrow. 'You know you can always just _tell _him right? After all, we are all connected.' He winks at my dumbfounded expression. 'Just tell him we're coming.' He laughs.

**'Yeah come on Mione, where are you, you are nearly half an hour later than you said you would be!' **I hear my other brother scold me jokingly. **'I saw your master Ivory pass by the library nearly twenty minutes ago! I'm rather offended that it took you this long to contact me! I was afraid that you were eaten or kidnapped! Don't you ever worry me like that again Missy.' **Malik taunts me, using a fake motherly voice.

**'Yes Ma'am.' **I say back in a soldier like voice. 'Come on Ars, we've got to get going to the library. There are a couple of things I want to look up myself, mainly for this charms essay I've got to write by next Thursday.' I tell him, letting him walk willingly beside me rather than being forcefully dragged against his will.

'Next Thursday Hermione, really?' A voice from behind me laughs. Accompanied laughter joins in, but I can tell by the tone and identity of the voices that they weren't implying any sort of mockery. 'Come on, haven't you gotten more important things to worry about than another ridiculous essay?'

'Draco, nice to see you too.' I say without turning around. Laughing, my brother and I turn to face the incoming group of friends. Spreading across his face, an undeniably happy smile spreads across Draco's face as he opens his arms, inviting me in. 'You should know me by now.' I mumble into his robes, hugging him back.

'So where are you guys headed off to?' Draco asks, letting me go.

'We're just headed off to the library to meet Malik to help him study for the final task tomorrow.' Arsenio answers for me. 'Where are you guys headed off to?'

'Well, we were just headed off to the Great Hall for dinner…' Blaise begins. 'But you know, I think we're going to come with you guys instead, or, at least I am.' He says with a smile. 'What about you guys, you in?' he asks the group following him.

'I think it's safe for me to say we're all in.' Theo speaks up, looking to his companions, Draco, Pansy and Astoria for conformation, which in turn is responded with eager nodding. 'Alright then, off we go!'

**'Hey Malik, I'm going to assume its ok if Draco and the rest to come down to the library.' **Arsenio says, informing his brother. **'So, we're going to be there pretty soon.' **

** 'Yeah that's fine.' **Malik confirms quickly.

**'So hey, how's the studying going?' **I ask him, feeling a wave of fake astonishment wash over me.

**'Of course you'd be the one to bring that up, wouldn't you Hermione?' **Malik laughs goodheartedly. **'And just so you know, I've looked through the school's entire collection of potion books, and the complete edition of Triwizard Tournament Tasks and Champions.' **He informs his siblings with a touch of tiredness in his voice. **'And now thanks to staring aimlessly at these books for the past four hours, I've got a headache.' **He says overdramatically, sending us an image of the stacks of books piled in front of him.

**'First off, it's only been about an hour and a half, maybe two hours at most.' **Arsenio laughs at his brother's exaggeration. **'Second, I read the titles of some of those books; and I would like to know how **_**International Quidditch World Cups throughout the History **_**is going to help you in this tournament.' **

Malik raises his mental hands in defeat. **'Hey can you blame me? I got bored.' **He admits sheepishly.

'Come on guys, we should hurry, Malik's getting off task, and he's got a lot of information to cover before the final task tomorrow.' I tell the others, picking up my pace just a little. 'There are definitely some things that I want to make sure he knows; just cover the main topics. He told me that he hasn't gone over dangerous magical creatures-'

'Hermione Hermione,' Draco cuts me off, putting a finger to my lips. 'You're rambling.' He informs me, laughing quietly. 'Besides, we're there now. Let's go save your brother from the dangers of his ignorance.' He says, using my tone of voice to mock me.

'Guys, over here!' A voice calls from across the library. In the far corner of the great hall of knowledge, sat my brother surrounded by a wall of books. Racing over to him, the six of meet him in his private section of the library. 'Oh thank _Merlin _you guys are here! I swear I was about lose my insanity in this corner! I swear to Salazar if I see another damned book I'm going to explode.' He says, exaggerating with his personal hand motions.

'Well sucks because your wonderfully strict sister here dragged us all the way from the Great Hall to help you study and keep on task.' Pansy laughs quietly, breaking the news to him. 'So, here we are. We're here to pick out more books for you to read and help you cram knowledge into your head.' She adds on, taking a seat down next to my brother.

'So, _Professor, _where shall we start?' Malik asks me bitterly without the normal rude edge a tone such as that would possess. Instead it took on more of an agitated tone.

'Draco, Blaise, Astoria, I need you three to go put all these books away.' I command, gesturing to the atrocious mess covering the table from corner to corner. 'Pansy, you can stay here and quiz Malik over what he's learned so far.' I say with a wink before turning my back on the couple. 'As for myself, I will find that textbook that Hagrid made us buy in our third year… where would they keep that?' I ask myself, keeping myself a safe distance away from the rest of my friends so they don't make sure overhear me talking to myself. 'Oh, excuse me, Madam Pince?' I ask, rushing up to the old librarian who was busy reordering books. 'Do you have a copy of _Monster Book of Monsters _that I could borrow or look at?' I ask her politely.

'Of course Hermione, but I keep locked up in a cage, near the _Magical Creatures _section, near the back. The key is hanging on side. Just be careful, I assume you know the circumstances in which to open them.' She says, pointing to the opposite side of the room without looking up from her work.

'Thank you Madam Pince.' I say, supplying a quick thanks before rushing over to the steel cage. I grab the rusty old key off the side, and quietly unlock the cage, hoping not to disturb the sleeping books. Ever so slowly, I pick up the nearest one by the open side; to prevent it from snapping my fingers off, and pull it out of the cage, quickly shutting the cage again before any other books obtain the chance to escape. Luckily for me, the book I happened to grab was an unusually calm one, purring softly in my hand. With only raising my eyebrow, I return back to my brother and Pansy, happy to see that everyone else has returned.

'Oh _Hermione…_' Pansy moans, seeing the furry book nestled in my arms. 'Why did you bring that back here? I thought we were all finished here!' she exclaims in exasperation.

'Yeah, couldn't you have just brought back some simple, nonviolent book that doesn't have teeth or fangs, or weird hairy pages?' Astoria adds, on, taking a seat next to my other brother on the floor.

'_Because_ you guys, this just so happens to be one of the most in depth, extensive collection of dangerous magical creatures ever known to literature!' I inform them, shoving the book in all their faces. 'Hagrid knew what he was talking about when he told us to get this book.' I say proudly, stroking the spine of book. The book purrs loudly and flies open, directly to the center. 'Alright, Malik, are there any creatures you are unsure about, anything you'd like to know?' I ask him.

'Umm, I don't… know?' he says hesitantly, looking towards the ground. 'Come on Hermione, I would rather you just skim down the index or the table of contents or something and tell me which ones you don't know or something? I am worn out from all this reading.' He begs slightly.

'Here, let me.' Theo, who is sitting on my left, offers. He grabs the hairy, prickly and puts it on his lap, flipping straight to the table of contents. 'Introduction, Acromantula, ashwinder, blah blah blah, crup, dragons, erklings, fire slug, flobber worm,' he reads off, flipping the pages obnoxiously loud. 'Ghoul, griffin, Kappas, manticores, merpeople… (at this my brother snorts loudly) nogtail, pixie, don't care don't care don't care…' Theo trails off again, flipping through more of the pages. He continues to read off names until he reaches near the end of the alphabet, then stops again. 'Well hey, you know how to fight off those things right? The ones that actually qualify as dangerous?' He asks my brother, looking across to him.

'Yeah yeah I got all of that.' He responds with the wave of his hand. 'Is that the end of the book?' he asks without the careless tone.

'Well I mean I skipped over a ton of them, but those were creatures like puffskins, the ones that pose absolutely no threat to you, but there is _one _creature that I came across that I didn't know, in fact it's a creature that I've never heard of.' He says, handing the book over to me. 'It's… that one.' He says, bending over the arm rest so he can point it out to me, his hair tickling my face.

'A… yonggary…' I sound out the unfamiliar creature's name. 'Huh, I must say that although I am unfamiliar with the creature, it does sound familiar from somewhere.' I admit, flipping to the section of the book dedicated towards the creature.

'**Yonggary, four legged cat like creature, equipped with long claws and razor sharp teeth, two exaggerated k-9 on both jaws, short jet black hair…' **I read aloud to my brothers, not exactly feeling like informing everybody by reading out loud to them.

'Umm, Hermione, you might as well read aloud…' Arsenio trails off with a sheepish smile on his face. 'Basically, this creature is a giant black catlike creature with killer claws and fangs; that's all we know so far.' He tells the rest, looking over to me for the rest of the information.

'I mean, there really isn't that much here…' I trail off, suddenly uncomfortable with having everyone else around. They're already worried enough, I don't need them worrying about the chance that their beloved friend might run into the cat version of a basilisk.

**'Guys… is there any way you can get them to leave? This is getting bad, fast, and I don't want them worrying to much about Malik.' **I tacitly tell my brothers, whole nod almost invisibly in response.

'Um, hey guys, sorry to interrupt this study, but I'm actually starving right now.' Blaise says suddenly, as if he got some silent cue from me and my brothers. 'Does anyone else want to come with me? He asks his group of friends.

'I'll come with you.' Theo says, nodding. He leaves my left side and departs with his friend. 'I'll talk to you guys later, fill me in on what that creature is, ok?' he asks, but without waiting for an answer, both he and Blaise leave the library.

The remaining Slytherins exchange hesitant glances between each other in the silence of the group. I'm pretty sure they're just confused as to why I'm not going on. Meanwhile, in the silence, Astoria walks over from her seat on the floor at my feet to my left side and sits down in the seat Theo used to occupy. 'Should we leave?' she whispers almost silently.

Staring back at the blond girl in front of me, her green eyes sparkling in worry and understanding. It never fails to astound me how these Slytherins seem to be in touch to everyone's emotions and thoughts. 'If you think you can pry Pansy away from my brother and get Draco out of here than be my guest.' I whisper back, constantly checking to see if Pansy was looking, which she wasn't. She was fully engaged in a conversation with Malik, who was just as engaged as she was.

'Hey, Pans?' Astoria says much louder, with a purpose in mind. 'Can you come with me to McGonagall classroom? I need her to go over that group project one more time, and since you're in my group you might as well come with me.' She says smoothly, lying without a flinch or even the slightest hesitation.

But Pansy does however, hesitate before answering. 'Yeah, sure.' She says, feeling slightly annoyed or saddened, I can't differentiate. 'Tell me everything I missed, ok Malik?' she asks sweetly, turning back to my brother, who nods back in return.

'You too, Ars?' Astoria asks in the same tone. 'I want to know everything about that creature at dinner, in the Great Hall where you'll hopefully meet us. Sound like a plan?' she asks, her deep green eyes sparkling.

'Yeah, I'll be there, and I'm sure the other two will as well.' He says, exchanging one quick look of approval to his siblings before turning back to the young blond girl. 'Yeah, we'll be there just as soon as we finish up here.' He tells her.

And with that, the girls leave the library, now fully engrossed in a conversation of their own. Whereas here, I now sit with my brothers, who are staring carefully back at me, and Draco, the blond boy sitting on the arm rest to my right, casually leaning over me, his arm draped around my arms loosely. **'I can't get rid of him, can I?' **I silently to my brothers, rolling my eyes.

**'Doesn't seem like it Mione.' **Arsenio muses, looking over at the two of us with amusement in his eyes. **'I don't see why you're so nervous. Just, spit out whatever you read, I'm actually getting hungry.' **He laughs.

**'Yeah, not to mention late,' **Malik puts in, taking a quick look over his shoulder to the window behind him, seeing that the sun just dip beneath the tree line, painting the sky with its oranges and deep reds. **'And I kind of need the sleep if you know what I mean. And I want to try and get as much as possible, not knowing if that's even going to happen, knowing how my nerves get to me…' **

** 'Ok ok… **Well, there isn't really much to know about these things…' I trail off weakly, skimming over the pages again. 'They are very ill-tempered creatures and very aggressive and territorial. They are silent nocturnal hunters, but hate the cold because it kills their internal power and strength source. So they hibernate during the winter time. But the only major threat about these creatures despite their immense size and strength is their eyes.'

Waiting for some sort of reaction, I look up from the book, turning my head to look at the people around me. Eyes wide, they all just stared back, waiting for me to continue. And with another sigh, I continue. 'They are magical creatures, so they have to have some sort of magical attribute. They have eyes that, when under some sort of danger, turn different colors according to the situation. If they feel that they are in power, their eyes will turn, violet. In this case, whenever eye contact is made one will be killed on the spot.' I say, stumbling over the word violet for just a little bit. 'However their eyes will turn red, this is a sign that they feel trapped and need a way to escape. If the eyes make contact with yours while they are red, they will temporarily turn you to the dark side, just to give them enough time to escape.' I close, flipping the page to see if there is another page on these creatures, disappointed to see that there is not.

The silence amongst the four of us hung around for a bit longer before someone decided to break it. 'Wow… so…' Draco mumbles, putting a hand on his forehead, covering his eyes.

'_Sacrebleu _I've got a headache…' Malik murmurs, rubbing his forehead. 'This isn't going to end well this is going to end well at all.' He murmurs over and over again, beginning to rock back and forth slowly. **'I pray to Merlin above that all I have to do is cook up some potion and be done with this.' **He says to us, a pure edge of misery resonating in my mind.

I'm about to say something, when something else out of the corner of my eye catches my attention, a glint of red, near the entrance to the library. Turning around in my seat, bright green eyes lock onto mine, begging me to come closer. Red hair, the bright green eyes, Ginny. _Come here. _Her eyes seemed to tell me, asking me to come closer. Although I don't know what compels me to go, I push myself off the couch, my back facing Draco and my brothers. **'Guys, I'll, I'll talk to you two later.' **I say curtly, walking away from them.

**'Wait, why?!' **Malik exclaims, his tone frantic. **'Where are you going?' **

I hesitate a little before answering, stopping my walking completely. **'I need to set something straight with one of my friends.' **I tell them, resuming my walk to meet Ginny. **'I'll talk to you guys later, alright?' **

** 'Alright, love you Mia.' **They chorus together. **'Oh, and I'll tell Draco where you're going; he had a rather hurt expression on his face.' **Arsenio says, putting a light tone in his voice, laughing hollowly. There's no need to thank him because I'm pretty sure they both got the wave of gratefulness I sent in their direction. And after that, I pull out; letting my thoughts focus on what Ginny could possibly want with me.

Last time we ever spoke, or even made eye contact with each other, it was filled with tension and uneasiness. But pushing all of that aside, I stride over to the redhead, who was seeking refugee behind one of the great stone statues in the hallway. I walk over to her, and finally stop a good two or three steps away from the girl.

Standing there in an awkward silence behind the shadows of the statue, we both just face each other, waiting for one to say something, anything. That is until finally, the silence is broken when the redheaded girl in front of me decides to break it. 'Hermione, I wanted to apologize.'

Well. Out of all the possible things that I could have predicted, this was at the very bottom of the list. I've known the Weasley's my whole life, or, at least for the good part of four years, and they are a very proud family, or at least the youngest of the pack are. And my dumbstruck expression must have come across to her, because she quickly back pedaled and started over.

'I wanted to apologize for the way I acted, the night you told us about, about your heritage.' She stumbles, not exactly sure how to form her words. 'I'm also sorry for avoiding you all this time too, I just, wasn't sure how to approach you anymore, it's like you're a different person! I mean, one year you're hating Malfoy's very name and person, next you're hanging out with his whole crowd! I just, didn't know what to say anymore, I'm sorry, I should have come to you sooner.' She rushes out, her words sounding very unsure and hesitant, as if she's afraid of overstepping some sort of imaginary barrier.

But even after hearing all of that, I can't wipe the befuddled expression off my face, which paints an anxious expression on hers. 'Come on Mione, can't you say something? Please just don't stand there with that look on your face.' She begs, taking a step towards me.

Although I don't exactly flinch at her gesture, I don't move either, my mouth still slightly agape, my eyes not leaving her contact. With her standing about one step's worth of distance away from me, I feel obligated to say something to her. 'I, I was never mad, Ginny.' I stumble out word by word. 'I was upset, that you three were avoiding me for something I couldn't do anything about, something that I can't change…' I say, hoping my words impact her in some way.

'I know I know, and I'm sorry…' she says, sighing. She covers the rest of the distance between us and hugs me. 'Please, I'm sorry.'

Something inside me forces me to hug her back, letting me forgive her. 'Ginny, relax, I forgive you.' I whisper in her ear, laughing quietly.

She jerks back from me, holding me back at arm's length. 'You serious?' she exclaims, her expression completely changing from despair to joy. 'You're gonna forgive me that easy?

Her statement brings laughter out of me. 'Of course I do Ginny.' I say laughing. 'But…' I trail off, not knowing where to go with this sentence.

'I know, things will never be the same.' She finishes sadly.

That familiar silence comes back into our conversation, but there was always something that was gnawing at the back of my mind. It was something that I was bound to bring up sooner or later. 'What about Harry and Ron?' I ask timidly.

She must've known that question was coming too, for she sighs greatly and puts another sad smile on her face. 'They, they kind of don't know that I'm here talking to you. They were very against, actually, let me rephrase. _Ron _was against me coming here, Harry just silently agreed.' She said, laughing hollowly. 'You know my brother, his, superstitions and such.' She says, cracking a small, lighthearted joke.

'Yeah, I know.' I laugh along with her. 'But, maybe he'll come around eventually.' I say, not meeting her eyes.

But within the silence that once again falls over the two of us, there grows a tension that wasn't there before. 'But, Hermione, there is something else I have to tell you, news that came in for you this morning.' She says uneasily.

'Yeah, what was it?' I ask, still smiling at Ginny, despite the beyond nervous look she had painted on her face, unaware of the news that was about to hit me harder than anything.

'Hermione, your adoptive parents are dead. News came in this morning, Voldemort killed them.'

**MALIK'S POV**

Watching my sister leave was just another stab to the heart. I don't want to die tomorrow, but I can't shake the feeling that I'm not going to like what goes down when the sun rises again. Casting a quick hopeless glance at the group before me, I pray that I don't have to tell Draco to leave before turning back to the stained glass window to the left side of me, letting in dying rays of sunlight just before the sun sinks below the tree lines, not to be waken again until the next morning, bring my fate in its flames.

'Hey guys, I think I'm going to go too…' he says, alternating his glaze between the two of us. 'I promised Crabbe earlier I'd help him with his history of magic essay at dinner, so I better get going before it ends. Do either of you two want anything?' he asks politely, standing up.

'No, we'll be fine thank you,' my brother answers for me, standing up to walk Draco out. 'Thanks mate, we'll talk to you later, before the final task, alright?' he asks, confirming. **'I think you need to accept this too. You were oddly quiet this whole time. I think you loosening up before this task is the best thing for you.' **

'Yeah, I'll be there. Under the tree by the lake right?' My twin nods. 'Yeah, I'll be there. And I'll tell the others as well.' He says with a smile. 'Now I've really got to get going. I'll see you two later, and Malik,' he says, addressing me directly. I look up from my gaze at from the window to meet his calm gray eyes. 'Take it easy, ok?' he advises, looking away from me.

And with that, he briskly leaves with his hands in his pockets and his eyes trained on the floor beneath him. After the young Slytherin is out of sight, by brother comes over and sits next to me, not asking for attention. _I don't need your attention. I just need you to listen. _Alright, sending a mental message without really doing so, impressive. 'Listen, Malik, I've had the honor of growing up with you for about fourteen years now,' he begins, sighing. 'And not once have I ever seen you so tense and nervous.' He admits, putting a hand on my shoulder.

'Well why do you _think _I'm like this Ars?!' I snap back, wheeling around on him, feeling my anger rising, glaring. **'You have **_**no clue **_**what it's like to be in my position right now! Do you have even the **_**slightest **_**intimation of what could happen tomorrow?! I've been talking to Harry recently, and he doesn't have a good feeling about tomorrow either, not just because of whatever challenge they're going to throw at us.' **I spit out, not letting my glare lighten up. Violet against violet, or, at least I'm pretty positive mine are still violet. **'Something's coming, I can feel it.' **I say softer, letting my gaze fall to the floor. **'And whatever it is, I've been feeling it ever since that night when Hermione was attacked at that Quidditch game.' **

I can feel my brother is about to say something but before he gets the chance, we are once again interrupted by someone else. 'Excuse me, Malik?'

I know that voice. My eyes widen in surprise as I turn towards the sound. Ascella and Marc stand together before me, nothing short of urgent seriousness in their eyes. 'Umm, yeah is there something I can do for you?' I ask, standing up to face them.

But instead of addressing me, Marc turns to my brother, eyeing him carefully. 'Arsenio, we need to, take your brother for a moment.' He words carefully, only hesitating once. 'There's something we need to go over with him before the task tomorrow and we have to make sure he is ready.' Great, more training about how I'm bound to end up perished tomorrow. First Karkaroff, now them? Bloody fantastic.

'Oh, alright.' Arsenio says, sounding rather offended. 'If you finish before dinner, that's where I'll be, with Draco at the Slytherin's table. But if not, I'll see you in our dorm.' He tells me, walking up to hug me. **'You'll be fine.' **He tells me before letting go. And with one last glance, my brother leaves, just like everyone else before him did; with their heads hanging low and their hands in their pockets, leaving me with my healing masters.

'Come Malik, there is something important that you probably should know before tomorrow.' Marc says professionally, wrapping his doctor's robe around him. 'There's something we forgot. We mastered the physical side of healing, with herbs and potions, but there's another side. The emotional and mental side of healing, self-healing.' He says, gesturing for myself and Ascella to follow him.

'This is really the last part of your training.' Ascella puts in using a kinder voice, walking beside me. 'But, to me personally, this is worst part.' She warns in a soft voice. 'This, in order to get you to fully understand the practice of self-healing, it requires mental strength, and there is only one way to obtain that…' she trails off. I can feel it, in her aura. She's absolutely terrified of what she's about to do to me, and frankly, it's scaring the daylight out of me.

'The only way for you to get strong mentally is to put you through pain.' Marc interrupts, getting straight to the point.

That struck me in the gut, sending me straight into a state of panic. 'Pain?' I squeak out in an unnatural high pitched voice, stopping dead in my tracks. 'You mean… physical, pain right?' I ask, hoping it was something I could handle, like physical pain. Both my brother and Marc put me through enough of that during my physical training.

'No, like, this is going to be emotional and mental pain aimed to torture you in more ways than one. And now, is when we start.' The male instructor says, stepping into one of the empty classrooms. 'This shouldn't take long, you're a smart kid. You should catch on quick enough.' He says curtly.

Together, the three of us step inside the room and Marc shuts the door behind us. And just as the door slams shut, his voice penetrates my ears. 'Now, it's time to get started.' All of a sudden, I felt myself being thrown somewhere backward, black swirling around in my vision until I can see nothing at all.

_Opening my eyes, I wake up in the middle of nowhere, fog swirling damply out of unknown places. Where am I? I think to myself, standing up groggily. Taking a decent look around, the place to me looks like some giant overgrown garden. 'What the hell is going on?' I say out loud, to no one in particular. _

'Malik, Malik can you hear me?'

_Whipping around, I frantically turn from left to right, searching for the voice that spoke to me. 'Who's there? Where are you? Where am I?' I scream, only hearing my voice travel a couple meters in front of me before it drops. _

'I'm sorry Malik.' _The same voice apologizes before falling silent once again. Sorry? Sorry for what? This whole scenario is beginning to freak me out, but for some reason, I can't remember why I'm supposed to do here, or what I'm even here for. Desperate to find someone, I begin walking down the musty pathway, trying my best to focus on the distance in front of me. 'Hello? Is, is anybody there?' I call out into the distance, hoping for some sort of reaction or response, but once again, my questions are only met with silence. _

_ That is until an earsplitting screech answers my call, slicing through the silence. Stopping dead in my tracks, my eyes widen like a deer's and my ears perk, listening for the slightest of sounds. The scream comes again, cutting through the atmosphere like a knife. But this time, the scream was calling for someone; the scream was calling for me. _

_ 'MALIK!' _

_ My feet find a mind of their own. They push me in the direction of the scream, knowing in the back of my mind that the voice I heard, the scream sounded more familiar than I cared to admit. 'MALIK PLEASE HURRY!' The voice screamed again, agony and gut wrenching pain shining as clear as the sun. The beads of sweat begin to drip down my forehead, frantic to find the source of the cries. Whipping left and dashing right, every turn I see to make leads me further away from the source, the cries become less and less distinct. _

_ 'Where are you?! How do I know where to find you?! Help me out here!' I think desperately to myself, my mind reeling with confusion and frustration, as I round another corner only to find another dead end. Sprinting back in the other direction, I direct myself to the opposite side of the maze, hoping to find the girl in need of help. Yes, I've decided that the source of the cries was from a girl. And the screaming continued, fortunately for me because they were getting louder with every loud footstep I take in her direction. _

_ But just as soon as the cries had come, they stopped, the air around me stopping, hanging still in its tracks. Skidding to a halt, I remain completely still, waiting, praying to hear a scream again. My worst fear is to know I'm too late, that I can't save her. Minutes tick by without another noise, and the longer the minutes tick by, the more my sanity seems to slip. Then all of a sudden, I can't take it anymore. 'HERMIONE!' I scream in desperation and fear, tears flowing down my face as I whip around another corner, only to find a pathway the mirrored the one I just came from exactly. 'HERMIONE PLEASE! ANSWER ME!' _

'Can't find her?' _Eyes narrowing, I glower at the space around me, knowing that voice didn't come from someone inside the same realm I was in. _'Are you frustrated Malik?' _the voice says again, mercilessly taunting me. _'Where were you when she needed you? She's gone now, and it's all your fault. You could have saved her.'

_'Shut up!' I scream, attempting to shake the voice out of my head, trying with all my will to tell myself she's still alive. 'She's alive! I don't know who you are, but you have no idea what you're talking about, you bastard!' And with those final words, I use all the willpower in my body to block his gibes out, but one more comes through, and it's enough to shatter all the fortitude I had built up. _

'Don't believe me?' the ghostly voice jeers, hissing into my ear, sending shivers down my spine. 'See for yourself.'

_On command, the brush in front of me gives way to a pavilion, and subconsciously, my body leads me forward, walking into the middle of the pavilion. And almost out of the mist, I find who I am looking for. _

_ But I wasn't looking for her like this. Limbs mangled, her arms and legs are unnaturally bending, leaving her body looking like something out of a horror film. And her eyes, her beautiful violet eyes that resembles mother's, stare unseeingly into space, a permanent look of terror and pain etched onto her face, her black hair gnarled and matted around her. A single drop of blood oozes from her mouth, only to match a scar that would forever mar her skin. Carved out by the handiwork of a knife, 'Disgrace' was elegantly written out, the blood long dried. _

_ Falling to my knees, I, I can't describe how I felt. I felt nothing, emptiness, guilt. She's… she's gone… I was too late. Whoever did this to her was long gone, and there was nothing I could do about it. 'Hermione…' I whisper, my voice cracking. Looking over, I see one of her hands, the closest one to me, seem as if it were reaching out to me the last time. I grab it, and squeeze it tightly in mine, rubbing it gently. 'Mia I'm so sorry…' I cry, letting the racks of sobs overtake my body. Crawling on my hands and knees, I straighten her limbs out, and take her head into my lap, and gently brush down her hair with a shaking hand. _

'Malik,' _a voice calls out inside my head. _

_ 'No! Get away from me!' I scream out loud, holding my dead sister's corpse close to me, my eyes flashing dangerously golden. 'Get away from me you bastard!' I scream, whipping my wand out of my pocket, tears of despair and fury blinding my vision. _

'Malik calm yourself! None of this is real.' _The voice shouts back just as loudly inside my head, causing me to double over and cringe. _'All you see here is an illusion.'

_Suddenly, my sister's body disappears, leaving me absolutely alone. Searching in every direction, I can't find her, only adding to my already frantic demeanor. 'What, what did you do to her?!' I demand, my golden eyes glaring at the atmosphere around me. 'Where is she?!' I scream, my voice getting louder. _

_ But the voice never responds back to me. Instead, another voice meets my ears, a weaker one, and a much weaker one, one that sounds too much like my own. Slowing turning to face the grounds behind me, terror meets me once again as my eyes widen to a point much larger than they are supposed to be. In front of me, sprawling around on his hands and knees, my twin brother, blood pouring out of wound in his chest. 'Ma…Malik…' he sputters, choking up on blood. But before I get the chance to move, he is yanked onto his back by an invisible force, and he begins to twitch, screaming silently, but unable to get any sound out, his eyes tightly shut in pain._

_ Growing up in a family like mine, you know dark curses inside and out, and I know well enough to know enough about dark magic to be able to identify a spell like that. On my knees once again, I can only sit in utter helplessness as my brother spazzes as white hot knives sear across his skin, unable to do anything about it. _'You can't do anything to help him.' _That same voice tells me, cold and true. And just like that, with one last blood curdling scream, my brother vaporizes, into a pile of ashes, vulnerable to the weakest of elements. _

_ That cuts it. 'GODDAMNIT SHOW YOURSELF!' I scream, enraged, my golden eyes ready to prove to anyone that I'm ready to fight. 'Show yourself you bloody coward, you evil, soulless, ill-tempered psychopathic-'_

'Malik calm yourself.' _A different voice says, this time gentler_. 'You need to keep your emotions under control in order to heal yourself properly.' _It instructs me._

'_The nerve of you bloody coward!' I roar, not knowing who to glare to. 'I just watched my siblings perish in front of me and you expect me to keep my emotions in check?! Who do you think you are? And what do you mean heal myself? If I had gotten here sooner I could have healed my siblings but no, I was here, helpless and useless watching them die before my very eyes. I am not the one that needs healing. But once I find out who you are, I will make sure you're the one who needs medical attention.' I spat, slamming my eyes shut angrily, partly because I do not know where to look anymore, the other part of me afraid of what I might see if I do open my eyes. _

'Check again.' _The original voice tells me coldly. _

_ Somehow finding the strength to open one of my eyes, I'm surprised to find a ghastly cut on my left forearm, just above the wrist all the way to the elbow. The angry red skin peels upward, exposing the inflamed flesh beneath it. Due to the aggravation from my fingers touching it, blood and pus begin to flow again, only reddening the rest of the area. But I just stare at it, transfixed as to how it got there in the first place, surely I would have felt that. _

_ The voices in my head must have sensed that I had their attention, for they started speaking once again. _'Clear your mind Malik. None of that happened, it was all an illusion. Clear your head of all thoughts, and keep your emotions under control.' _It instructs me calmly._

_ None of what you just saw was real. I that to myself over and over again, but for some reason, my crying never ceases, the images of their tortured bodies doesn't magically erase itself form my mind. Opening my eyes fully now, I see a girl, maybe about a year or so older than me, standing calmly back at me with calm ocean blue eyes. Ara. I smile sadly at her, but just as I'm about to stand up and go and see her, a spell, fired out of nowhere hits her square in the chest, and soon, a deep red liquid stains through her clothes as she lies helplessly on the floor. 'It isn't real it isn't real it isn't real.' I tell myself, shaking my head, forcefully. _

_ But just as I'm about to open my eyes once more, that vortex feeling returns, as though someone is shoving me through a wormhole. And the misty pavilion swirls around in blackness before completely disappearing from my view as I fall faster into a hole I can't see. _

Hitting the floor hard, I gasp loudly, taking in as much as much air as my lungs would allow. I begin panting, feeling my head become lightheaded as another pain shoots through my left arm. 'Do it now! Heal yourself!' someone yells with a deep voice.

Unable to see who it was through my tears, I close my eyes, and imagine every cell in my left arm coming together, healing the wound I never figured out how I got. Calming my breathing, I continue to imagine all my skin, muscle, and nerve cells repairing themselves, reforming the bonds that were once broken. After about a minute or two, a cooling sensation replaces the once stinging pain. And sighing in relief, I open my eyes again to meet the eyes of my masters, one looking extremely pleased the other looking absolutely stricken with worry.

'Malik,' Marc says with a smirk on his face. 'You're ready.'

**A/N: Whoa… you guys still alive after that? I know I'm not. I spent many long hours writing this thing, and it's my longest chapter EVER, twenty three pages in word and more than twelve thousand** **words. Whew… I am worn out… but luckily, it's summer and I'm FAIRLY excited about the next chapter. ^.^ So, how about you review and tell me what you thought, or perhaps yell at me for taking so long, I don't care, either one. XD So, until next time, I'll see you later! Please review and tell your friends. **

**-Prongs **


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters/plot you recognize from **_**To Be a Snape **_**or from the original Harry Potter series. A full list of disclaimers from **_**To Be a Snape **_**is on my page.**

**Author's Note: I'm not going to bother keeping you here for very long; I am already aware of how much you hate me. Just, promise to not hate me more at the end of this, alright? **

**Enjoy the much anticipated installment of Life as a Snape!**

Life as a Snape Chapter 31

Someone awakes me from my sleep, much too early on my watch. 'Wha…' I mutter groggily, rubbing my eyes open. But, the room is much too darkly lit to see anything, anything well at least. 'What are you _doing?' _I whisper exasperatedly to whoever disturbed me from my sleep. 'It's not even five in the morning! What could you possibly want from me at this time?' I ask into the darkness.

**'Malik come on, get up.' **I hear my brother say inside my head.

I meet the disguised baby blue eyes of my twin brother. 'Arsenio, what, what the hell are you doing? Come on, let me sleep! I've got the third task tomorrow.' I moan, shoving my head back under my pillow.

'The third task is today.' He responds back, rolling his eyes dramatically so I could see them.

'It isn't today until I wake up.' I moan back, hoping that sounded better out loud than it did in my head. 'Besides, what's the point of me competing if I'm going to be asleep during the whole damn thing?'

'Because,' Arsenio starts back smartly. 'I overheard that Karkaroff is going to wake you and Krum up at the crack of dawn for some last minute training, so I woke you up at ten minutes till.' He says, shaking me harder. 'Now get up!' he whisper screams into my ear.

'You mean to say that you got me up at four fifty in the morning?' I say, all sorts of disbelief laced within my already groggy voice. 'I love you mate, but you come second to sleep when I'm deprived of it.' I mumble irritated, weakly back at my twin without any sort of real anger.

'Well you know I just wanted to talk to you before you were thrown into this task.' He says patiently, taking a seat on my bed. 'And look at me, I even took matters into my own hands and put a silencing charm over your bed so you don't have to move.' He says with a playful tone, elbowing me in the stomach goodheartedly.

'Glad to know you have my best interests in mind.' I respond back with a smirk that mirrored his. 'So, what did you want to talk about?' I asked him, stretching my limbs out, letting the blood flow back to them.

'I know how you get, when you're thrown into things like this…' my brother trails off, his demeanor suddenly saddened, his posture slumping over. 'I just wanted to make sure you were feeling okay.' He admits.

After his statement leaves his mouth, the silence falls again as the two of us try and find something to say. Neither one of us; in all our experience in the dark arts, have never felt this much anticipation and dread before. And this time around, it was much worse than the first two tasks. At least we were given some sort of lead. Well, sort of. Harry and Hermione found out what the first task was and well, word spread around. But this time, we got nothing. I have no idea what to expect, and that everlasting feeling of doom is making me sick to my stomach. 'Has Krum or Karkaroff told you anything?' Arsenio asks, finally coming up with something.

I look back up at him, my hopelessness radiating off in waves. 'No, Karkaroff is focusing all of his time and energy into making sure Krum wins. And you know how Krum is, too stuck up and arrogant to help out another champion.' I spit, suddenly feeling animosity against the other champion from my school. 'And Harry hasn't exactly been treating me with kindness either, ever since he found out…'

'I thought you said yesterday, in the library that you and Harry talk a lot.' Arsenio brings up, raising his eyebrow up at me.

'Yeah I know what I said…' I sigh sadly, once again looking away from my brother. 'I've tried to approach him multiple times, like when you and Mione were off training. But every time I manage to get his attention, the only talk that happens is small, like how my training is going and such.' I tell him.

'Well, you need to talk to him and get this whole thing smoothed out.' My brother wisely advises. 'It doesn't seem to be doing either one of you any good. I've seen the way he mopes around as if he's lost another family member. Talk some sense into him, and then maybe he'll understand.' He says before pausing slightly, bringing up another point. 'He probably isn't upset over this whole mess; he's probably torn in whom to support, Mione or the Weasel.' He spats in disgust at the thought of the redhead.

'Hey come on, he's probably not that bad of a guy.' I say, finding myself supporting the ginger. 'We've heard from several different people that he is a very… emotionally unstable person.' I say, stumbling over finding the right words to say.

Shaking his head, not caring less, my twin continues. 'Whatever his reasoning, just make sure this gets straightened out before the task. It isn't helping your concentration.' He says, his tone hard. 'I didn't think they would take the news so badly.' He speaks up again, this time his voice soft.

Shock washes over me as I realize that I have no clue how my sister feels about this whole situation. I mean, these are some of her closest friends, and they wouldn't speak to her, or even acknowledge her presence in a room. 'Has she told you anything?' I ask my brother, hoping that my sister didn't tell him something that I didn't know. 'You know, about them?'

But to my relief, my brother shakes his head. 'No, I haven't heard anything. But, yesterday, while you were staring out the window, contemplating your life,' he says with a laugh in his voice. 'I saw the little redheaded girl, Ginny; I think her name is, waiting for her outside the library. So, she probably made amends, but as for the other Weasley, I have no clue.'

**'Yeah, that was Ginny.' **My sister sudden speaks up, causing my brother and I to jump in surprise by her sudden appearance. **'She came and apologized to me.'**

** 'So, are things, you know, ok now?' **I ask hesitantly, silently praying that the whole fight has blown over.

**'No,' **she sighs sadly. **'Ginny said that the only reason Harry hasn't approached me is because Ron is still furious with me, thinking that I'm an undercover Death Eater or whatever…' **

** 'Ha! I **_**knew **_**that filthy weasel was behind this!' **Arsenio bursts out angrily. **'Oh just wait till I get my hands on his squalid ginger hair-'**

** 'Hey, relax Ars…' **I say, putting a hand on his shoulder. **'Remember, I'll talk to Harry about this later. I'll make sure he gets the message.'**

** 'Yeah, there isn't any need for violence anyway. Violence isn't the answer.' **Hermione says, using her fake but very real sounding motherly voice, wagging an imaginary finger at the both of us.

**'It may not be the answer, but it is **_**an **_**answer…' **Arsenio trails off spitefully, crossing his arms, glaring angrily at one corner of our dorm room.

I laugh out loud, but the both of can sense that Hermione isn't impressed, despite the fact we can feel her laughing as well. **'Well, violence **_**may **_**be an answer, but not with Ronald. He has a thick skull, so you better choose carefully which action you plan to take, ok? Because if you hit Ron, he'll hit back twice as hard.' **

** 'Oh I'm not worried about the weasel.' **Arsenio says, waving off her warning. **'I've got myself, Malik, and the whole rest of the Slytherins to help me. They don't need to be asked twice to hit a Weasley, especially Ron.' **He continues, a sinister smirk spreading across his face as he fantasies about the fight. **'Let's come back into reality for a moment. I can't lose, can I?" **He adds on, his lips falling back to reveal his teeth, perfectly aligned in his devious smirk.

**'Umm, hey? Can we come back to me for a second here? About to lay my life on the line for strangers' entertainment here.' **I speak up, rolling my eyes at my siblings.

But before I heard a response from either one of them, the thundering footsteps come storming for my dorm, getting increasingly louder as the distance decreases. And, and their closest, the heavy wooden door to my dorm room flies open, revealing my cleanly dressed headmaster, clothed in a dark maroon robe, lined with fur from some unknown animal, and his hat, also covered in animal fur. He stood tall, his staff made of finely crafted wood hitting the floor repeatedly in an impatient manner. 'Malik, get up. We have some last minute training to do.' His deep, scratchy voice tells me, his dark eyes glowering down at me.

**'Told you…' **My brother supplies lamely, looking over at me sheepishly.

'Arsenio, leave us.' Our headmaster barks, turning his glower over to my brother, who cowered under his gaze slightly.

'Yes headmaster.' Arsenio responds immediately, using the traditional military like voice that we use to address any personal in power. He bows respectfully and leaves the room, not looking back at me. **'Good luck Mate.' **He says, a tone of hopelessness echoing inside the voice in my head. **'I'll tell Draco that you won't be able to make that meeting near the lake.' **He says, pausing slightly before adding, **'Stay safe…' **After his words resound within my head for a couple of seconds, I feel him pull out.

**'Good luck Malik…' **I hear my sister say, echoing the words of her brother with the same hopeless tone. **'Just remember that we'll be with you the whole time.' **And with that, she pulls out as well, leaving me alone.

'Up Malik, let's go!' My headmaster barks again, harshly slamming his staff repeatedly against the wooden floor. 'Krum has been up for half an hour now. Just remember that when he beats your arse in the task today.' He snaps, turning his back on me. 'Be in the common room in ten minutes.' He says, casting a hard glance over his shoulder before striding away.

_Way to pick sides Karkaroff. _I think bitterly to myself as I throw the covers off my body, shivering slightly by the gust of frigid Scottish air. I throw my pajamas off, and search for my champion's robe, with my last name elegantly printed across the back of my neckline, the number five printed across the rest of the back. Once I find it, I slip it over my lean body, only taking a second to look at the flame scarring my whole back. After that, I throw on my black jumper and run out the door, not particularly excited about what was to come.

For a good reason too. Walking through the narrow felt hallway, I enter the common room; nearly deserted due to the early morning time. On the other side, standing in front of the lively fire, stood Karkaroff and Krum, thoroughly engaged in the conversation they were sharing. I knew it. I didn't even have to get out of bed, I knew neither one of them would pay attention to me, let alone offer me any advice to better my chances of living.

Huffing softly, I walk over and take a seat on the couch facing the fire, my hand balled up in a fist as I rest my head against it. I pick up bits and pieces of their conversation, but overall, I knew I wasn't going to pick up anything remotely intelligent. So, in order to make the time fly by faster, I use this time going through some of the spells I reviewed yesterday, the summoning charm, the blasting curse, the conjunctivitis curse… Wait, what does that one do again? **'Hey, Mia, can you hear me?' **I reach out to my sister.

**'Yeah, what do you need?' **She responds back airily, sounding as if she just got up for a second time.

**'Can you review the material in the **_**Standard Book of Spells Grade Five **_**for me? I want to make sure I'm prepared.' **

** 'Sure… umm, I'm just going to name the spell and you can tell me what its purpose is, ok?' **she says quickly, waiting for my mental nod before continuing. **'Four-Point spell.'**

** 'Causes the casters wand to point north; acting as a compass.' **I recite back.

**'Protego Totalum.'**

** 'Protection spell, generally used for protecting large areas.' **

** 'Banishing curse.' **

** 'Opposite of the summoning charm. Banishes whatever object the spell is performed on.' **

** 'Blasting Curse.'**

** 'Causes objects to erupt in flames.'**

** 'Conjunctivitis curse.' **

I freeze up, because this was the actually the one curse I couldn't remember the purpose for, even yesterday while aimlessly staring at the content in the spell book. **'Umm… Hermione?' **I ask, with a nervous laugh in my voice.

I hear her laugh quietly before she begins talking again. **'This curse causes extreme pain in the target's eyes, temporarily blinding of both eyes.' **She explains explicitly. **'This curse has been known to effectively fight of those creatures I told you about, the Yonggary.' **She advises, her tone serious. **'I don't know why, but I have a gut feeling that this isn't going to be the last time you hear about those savage creatures.' **She says worriedly.

I know the feeling she's talking about. I had that awful sensation in my stomach ever since I heard about them yesterday in the library. The whole concept of them just scares the living hell out of me. As a whole, they are pretty much a walking form of the Basilisk. And in all honesty, I think I'd rather face the snake. **'I know Hermione…' **I say miserably. **'You'd probably have a better chance of surviving in this task than me. You've always been the brightest out of the three of us.' **I sigh out, feeling ashamed of myself.

**'No, don't think like that. You'll be fine.' **She reassures me kindly. **'Did you want me to quiz you on some more spells?' **she offers with the same timid but kind voice.

**'Sure, why not.' **__I mumble, crossing my arms tighter, feeling even more lost and hopeless than I did a couple minutes ago. **'But how about you quiz me on the more offensive curses. For all we know we could be dueling the other champions for the cup.' **

** 'Alright. Tell me what the-'**

'Snape!'

Jumping out of my skin, my heart nearly stops at the sound of my headmaster screaming my name. I can feel Hermione pull out; probably recuperating from the heart attack she just received as well. **'Sorry Hermione…' **I apologize before turning my attention to the less than clean shaven man before me. 'Yes sir?' I ask respectfully, straightening my back.

'Come.' He orders me. 'Krum is ready to head over to the champion's tent, and I will not be making a second trip.' He says rudely, turning his back on me, with Krum at his heels, smirking smugly over at me. 'So if you want to look important to society, I suggest you come with me.'

Sighing, I bow respectfully and quickly cover part of the distance, making sure to keep a safe distance away from the both of them. I follow behind them a couple of paces behind, like a child following his parents around the market.

Silently, Karkaroff leads the way across the grounds to the champion's tent. We only pass by a couple of students in the hallway, mostly because the majority of them are still in bed, sound asleep, not having a problem in the world to care about. But those that we do pass keep their heads down, trying everything in their power to avoid eye contact with Karkaroff. But once they pass him, they look up only slightly to give a small friendly wave before continuing on their way. And finally, rounding one more corner, we reach the archway that leads to the champion's tent outside. Closing the distance between us and the tent, Karkaroff stops, standing just outside the lip of the tent, before turning to us.

'Alright my boy, this is your chance, win this for your name. Win this for me. Win this for Durmstrang!' Karkaroff exclaims, a proud smile overtaking his face. 'I have full faith in you. I'll see you at the entrance to the task in a couple of hours.' He says, putting a benevolent hand on the young seeker's broad shoulder, before taking it away and striding away back towards the castle without so much of a glance in my direction.

'Well thanks Karkaroff.' I mutter under my breath, trying my best to shove past the brute standing in my way of getting in the tent.

'What, you upset that he didn't say anything to you?' Krum sneers in his thick Bulgarian accent, a snide smirk growing across his broad face.

'No, I'm not.' I grumble, sending a glare in the Quidditch player's direction. 'Now if you don't mind, can you move your fat arse out of the way? I need to go talk to someone inside.' I say, trying to shove past him.

But he stops me with one simple gesture. He puts his hand out in front of him, stopping me by the shoulder. 'You're just mad he doesn't believe in you. He doesn't believe you'll make it out alive.' He hisses in my ear.

Tensing up, my eyes widen in horror, not believing that he just came out and blatantly stated that to my face. Out of the peripherals, the corners of Krum's mouth twitch upward even further. 'It's the hard truth. Live with it.' And with that, he steps aside and opens the lip to the tent, allowing me in. And with one shove past him, I elbow my way into the tent.

And the scene I'm met with is no more of a surprise to me. Inside the enormous tent, the other three champions are frantically getting ready for the task up ahead. And behind me, I hear Krum saunter in behind me. Looking around, I notice that everyone is extremely tense, doing their best to avoid each other.

The beautiful young blond girl from Beauxbatons, Fleur I think her name is, was sitting in front of a rather large mirror on the left side of the tent, furiously attempting to fix her luscious blond in multifarious different hairstyles. But after every single one she tries, she yanks it out of her hair and tries a different one, her facial expression becoming more and more frustrated with every failure in hairstyle. The other champion from Hogwarts, I believe his name is Cedric, is pacing nervously around the tent, tracing imaginary aimless circles, trying fruitlessly as he attempts to calm his mind.

But, still no sight of the other Hogwarts tribute. Instead, my eyes meet the champion from my school. Strutting around the rest of the tributes, Krum, with his nose stuck in the air, puts out this air of arrogance; walking around like life owes him something. _It must have been what Karkaroff shoved down his throat this morning. _I think bitterly to myself as I walk further into the tent.

But finally, I see who I'm looking for, seeking his own private respite in one of the separate rooms of the tent. Harry, sitting with his back against the entrance, sits in silence. Without much of a game plan to go off of, I head in straight for him, and sit down next to him on the bench. 'Spit it.' I order him without so much of a sympathetic tone in my voice.

'Spit what out, _Snape?' _he sneers hollowly, without looking at me.

'Drop the attitude and talk.' I order again, my voice rising along with my narrowing eyes. 'First off, you have _no reason _to treat either me or my brother like this. But, forget about us. What about Hermione?' I nearly scream. Pausing slightly, I turn around, whip out my wand, and cast a silencing charm over this section of the room before turning my attention back to Harry, who seems frozen in time after what I said.

His whole demeanor hits the floor with a loud smack, his face falling in worry, but still without looking at me. 'Is she okay?' he whispers almost silently, silently heartbroken.

'Oh, so you _do _care about her huh?!' I scream, my emotions letting lose. I feel the power begin to course through my veins, and I catch a quick reflection of myself in Fleur's mirror. A pair of brilliant golden eyes flash dangerously back at me. Good. 'So, Mr. Bullocks. You think it's okay to judge people by their family name. Figures, you did the same to everyone else in the Slytherin house, Draco, Blaise, Pansy, everyone! And you figure out your _best friend _is from a family you happen to despise and you think it's okay to shove her away and treat her like the dirt on the bottom of your shoe and pretend you have no idea who she is? Well I got news for you _Potter,' _I shout, spitting his name out venomously. 'Just like _your _father, your arrogance shines through brilliantly, but it doesn't impress anybody here. So you can drop the ignorant stuck up attitude, swallow your enormous ego and pride and apologize, or get the hell out of her life.' I say deathly quiet. Stalking forward and wand pointed, I close the distance between us, my wand mere centimeters away from puncturing his throat. 'Your choice.' I whisper, letting the trademark Snape smirk spread across my face, my eyes narrowed into sinister slits. 'Just remember, we Snape's do not forget what we cannot forgive.'

Green eyes on gold, Harry's glare begins to deteriorate, his entire posture collapsing under the aim of my wand. Sinking to the ground, his chest meets his knees, and he lets his whole act fall, the tears streaming down his face. 'You don't think I know that?' he cries, his head in his hands. 'I know I've hurt her, but what am I supposed to do now? She already hates me…'

I let my posture relax as well. But, out of all the reactions that I imagined, I prepared myself the least for this one. I have no idea how to respond to this, so I just let him let out everything on his mind. 'I mean, I didn't mean for it to go this far…' he admits, getting his emotions back under control. 'I mean, I avoided her for a day or two, just to wrap my head around the whole thing, but the instant I tried to approach her, Ron came up behind me…'

**'You were right; it's the weasel's fault.' **I tell my brother mentally, trying to shield my sister from hearing this.

He doesn't respond, but I know that he heard me because of the huge wave of livid anger that I began drowning in. As it receded, I manage to hear what Harry was trying to ask me.

'I'm sorry, mate…' he says, hesitating slightly before calling me that. Standing up before me, he extends an arm out to me. 'I'm sorry for being such an arse, to you, your brother, and Hermione. Especially Hermione. As soon as I see her, I'll apologize, and hope she forgives me…' He trails off again, his face falling.

Looking at his extended arm, I take his hand and shake it, sealing the feud. 'She isn't mad Harry.' I reassure him, watching his face light up again as I say that. 'She's just hurt.' I say with a small laugh as his face falls once again. Merlin it is easy to manipulate this kid's feelings.

'So, we're cool?' Harry asks, double checking.

'Yes Harry.' I say, rolling my eyes while letting an easy going smile spread across my face. 'Seriously, relax my friend.'

He lets out a good hearted laugh as the two of us take a seat on the bench. 'I don't know, you went all possessed demon on me back there.' He laughs, cracking a joke; despite the fact that the both of us know he's being utterly serious. 'So, Hermione, a Snape…'

'You'll get used to the idea.' I say, smirking over at him. 'She has so much more power over you now, just you wait. Now you can face the wrath of four Snapes instead of one. Better watch your back _Potter.' _I say with a joking smirk on my face. 'You don't know what could lie ahead in this task. We could end up fighting each other.' I mutter mysteriously.

'Oh please, we all know how would kick whose arse if it were to come to that.' Harry says, playing along with an air of fake arrogance. 'Take us for instance. Everyone knows that it would take me a whole ten seconds to whop your arse.'

This brings out a malicious laugh from within. 'Oh you are _so _on Potter.' I challenge him, shaking on our new found bet. 'If we live through this task by the time the sun comes up again, you won't live to see the next one.' I whisper softer, making sure he caught the smirk on my face.

But before my new adversary finds some sort of clever comeback, he's interrupted by a much louder, amplified voice that resounded throughout the whole tent. 'If the champions will, please make your way to the back entrance of the tent for your briefing. That is all.'

Shit. There is always that one person in your life where you just freeze at the sound of their voice. Yeah, I feel that way about whoever the hell just announced us. I would say that about Barty Crouch, but umm, yeah Harry discovered his dead body in the woods. And the air of tomfoolery and joking that was once between Harry and I evaporated. With one look at him, I knew we shared that same feeling of impending doom. With our heads locked straight forward, we begin to clear our minds of anything that doesn't have to do with staying alive.

Outside of our private room, Diggory, Fleur, and Krum were all waiting for us at the very back of the tent, near the back flap of tent. Also waiting with them, was a very tall man, dark haired man waiting for us, his dark eyes gleaming indifferently. We manage to wedge our way into the circle, and look up to the man; who now appeared even taller, and waited.

Once he sees that he has everyone's undivided attention, he clears his through officiously and begins to talk in the same manner. 'Good day champions, my name is Mr. Phishin, I am pleased to see that you all have made it this far,' he comments without much feeling. 'But today, will test every ounce of your knowledge, wit, strength, endurance, and ability to act under fear and pressure. But, the task itself is relatively simple. You will be entering a maze, and the objective is maneuver your way through in order to find the Tri-Wizard cup, which has been hidden inside. If for some reason you feel as if you are unable to continue, cast the simple flair spell and help will come to your location, and you will therefore be eliminated from competing any further. Have I made myself clear and are there any questions?'

But the only reaction that I or anyone else could muster was either a dumbfound expression or one of solemn. But the man giving us the briefing must have taken that as a no. 'Good, now, if you will all follow me.' He says, a small smirk crossing his face.

But before he takes a step, he stops himself short, turning his head around so he could see us. 'Oh, one last rule; something that the Ministry added this year.' He says, sounding slightly irritated, as if he's irritated about the new rules and regulations for the last task of the tournament. _Just as long as it's something that could save my arse, I am all for it… _'This year, the ministry forbids the use of magic on each other, which means you cannot manipulate one another to better your chances of winning. You may only use magic to defend yourself against the obstacles that lie in your path. Failure to do so will result in your immediate disqualification.' He states, rolling his eyes inside his sockets.

We all nod silently, not really having much of an opinion for the new rules. I can clearly say that for at least four of us, we just planned on finishing the task while managing to escape in one recognizable piece. Smirking, he then pushes the tent flap open, and walks through, the five of us, walking in tribute order with me in the back, following right behind me. And once we were all outside the long forgotten comfort of the tent, we face the stadium for the last time. On the far side of the stadium, stood five separate entrances, each one guarded by either a headmaster or a mentor. That is, all except for one. The entrance furthest to the right, narrow and dark, had no one standing by it. Just. Bloody. Perfect.

In front of me, Fleur is the first one to leave the line. She strides over to her headmaster, Madam Maxine, and stands in front of the first maze entrance, her hands clasped behind her back nervously as her, as her extremely tall headmaster tries to comfort her. Diggory, the other Hogwarts champion, leaves next. Walking over to the second entrance, he meets Professor Dumbledore, giving him a polite handshake before turning his attention to the shrubby maze.

Krum leaves next. With the slightly obnoxious band instruments blaring loudly, he confidently strides over to Karkaroff, who greets him just as arrogantly. He gives him a hearty slap over the back, and then returns to his pose; both hands resting on top of his cruel wooden staff, and his feet just slightly more than shoulder width apart. Oh how I let my glower shine in his direction.

Right before my own departure, Harry's came first. Stepping out nervously into the bright fluorescent lights of the stadium, Harry timidly walks over to his personal mentor, Alastor Moody I believe his name was; the rather creepy looking retired auror with the glass eye and scarred face. I think Harry and his friends referred to him as "Mad Eye Moody."

Once Harry had made his way over to the fourth entrance of the maze, the dark haired man turned to me, his hands on his own cane. 'Hey, good luck out there kid.' He says to me, putting a light hand on my shoulder, showing genuine pity and understanding before giving me a small push outside the tent and into the limelight.

Instantly I could feel the burn of shame and humiliation penetrate deep into my mind as I walked out further and further towards my entrance. Everyone else had someone to stand by them, someone to give them last minute tips and words of encouragement, I didn't have anybody. Not a single damn person to stand by me. Keeping my head low, I didn't want anybody seeing the brimming tears as I closed the distance between me and my pathetic excuse for an entrance. And closing my eyes, I stopped walking, taking a deep breath as I began to count down the seconds till I had to walk in there, trying everything in my willpower to calm myself down.

**'Hey Malik…' **

I knew someone would eventually come to my rescue, for I must have been sending out wave after wave of negative emotions. **'Mione? Ars? Are you both here?' **

** 'We're right here Mate.' **Arsenio responds comfortingly, reassuring me. **'So, how you doing?' **he asks carefully.

I sigh deeply, not really wanting to think or talk about it. **'Fine, I suppose.' **I mutter, opening my eyes. Casting a look to my left, I notice that all the other mentors are quietly talking to their champions, pointing in the direction they should head in, giving them pointers. **'It just bothers me that no one is here giving **_**me **_**pointers.' ** I admit, feeling the tears approaching again.

**'Hey hey come on…' **Hermione murmurs quietly. **'You have us, and we'll be giving you pointers throughout the whole task. You're better off than everyone else, even Harry.' **She tells me, trying to comfort me. **'You just need to remain calm and focus on the task at hand.' **She advises me. **'You can do this Malik.'**

** 'She's right mate.' **Arsenio echoes. **'But umm, I don't want to bother you during this task. I just want you concentrate on staying alive and getting to the cup. Hermione and I agreed, that you should only talk to us if you need help figuring something out, okay?' **

Nodding in agreement, I respond quietly, **'Alright, you're right. But, stay with me, alright?' **I plea, my voice echoing inside my head sounding like a scared, desperate child. **'Please…'**

** 'Of course.' **My siblings chorus together, soothing my frayed nerves.

But the second they say these words, I feel them pull out of my mind, I suppose to try and calm their own nerves and worries. That's fine, I guess I should try and begin to hone in my focus.

To my left, I saw Harry, who was through talking to Mad Eye, turned his attention to me. Our eyes met, and he looked down towards his hand, and pointed towards the right. He then pointed towards the maze, then back towards the right. Got the memo, go right.

But right at the very thought, the band let out an ear blasting horn blow, signaling it was time to begin. "Champions!" A familiar voice booms out. "It is time to begin the third and final task of the Tri-Wizard tournament!" he exclaims, causing an uproar within the by standing crowd. "Now if I can just get a thumbs up from the headmasters?"

Down the line, the headmasters each raise a hand up, signaling that their champion is ready; of course leaving me awkwardly raising my own hand. "Alright, without further ado, let the final task of the tournament begin!" he screeches.

And with one final blow of the brass horns that quickly follows the man's voice, the signal is given and my fate is sealed. Adrenaline kicking in, my feet push me forward into the dark, ominous maze, not letting me stop. Darting left and right, my fight or flight instinct begins to wear off, letting my senses flood back in. _Think, what's the best way to get out of here alive? _I ask myself.

_Find somebody else. _

Acting on the answer I just gave myself, I immediately begin running again, not knowing how in Merlin's name I was going to find anyone in this bloody maze. Another left, another right, the walls of this maze are starting to morph together… as if, I'm just running in circles. Halting to a stop, the visible puffs of air float in front of me, dancing like wisps of smoke in front of my face. _How the hell am I supposed get out of here?! Odds are I'm going to die in here, so, what's the point in even trying? _I think bitterly to myself. Switching my glances around, I glare at everything my eyes make contact with. _Damn everything, I am never going to get out of here. _

I stop in the middle of my mental rant, suddenly struck confused by something. I continue to breath hard, watching my breaths of air get more and more opaque. _It's… its mid-April… I'm not supposed to be able to see my breath… And, since when have all of these negative thoughts been flowing into my head like that? _

The answer finally came to me, as my eyes turn ever so cautiously to my right, knowing and fearing what would was waiting for me. Greeting my terrified eyes, the soulless, faceless creature floating ever so slightly above the ground faced me, unwavering. _Dementor. _It's slow, somber movements gravitate closer and closer to me. I watch, horrified as everything around me freezes over, all the plants bending downward due to the weight. Closer and closer it creeps forward. _Think! Think of a happy memory! _I command myself, whipping my wand out of my sleeve.

Closing my eyes, I give myself some time to calm down, and think of a memory that is strong enough to fight the devilish creature off. Time ticks on slower and slower, and I can feel it running out. _Think Malik! When's the time where you've been at your happiest?! _Growing more and more frustrated with my inability to conjure up anything, I resort to cowering, turning on heel and running in the opposite direction to buy myself some time before it catches me. _Maybe the time I first rode a broom? _

No matter how much I strain and wrack my brain for a memory worth fighting with, nothing comes up, and I can feel time nearly running out. With the dementor closing in on me, cornering me against the walls of the maze, I lift my wand up, with all hope lost, and concentrate.

_'_Expecto patronum_,' _I whisper, my wand wavering. Nothing more than a wisp of silver smoke puffs out of my wand before disappearing, not providing much protection from anything. The dementor is now at least ten meters away, and the surrounding air temperature begins to rapidly decline, my breaths becoming much more visible.

'Expecto… patronum,' I say again, slightly louder this time, focusing on a different memory this time, trying to remember the exact details of my mother. But to no avail, despite that the silver smoke was obviously a tad bit stronger, nothing more than a couple of trickles fell from the tip of my wand, creating a small puddle on the ground before disappearing.

_This is utterly hopeless… _I tell myself, letting my wand lower ever so slightly, letting me get a better look at the over looming creature closing in on me. Taking a better look, it's tattered, torn up robes seem to glide behind it, making it appear as if the creature is moving in slow motion. Closer and closer, it's no more than a couple meters away now. It's face… I can see its face. No eyes, no nose, just a hole, right where a mouth would appear on a normal looking human being.

**'**_**MALIK!' **_

A voice, a very powerful, female voice pierces through my thoughts. She, she sounds in pain…

_**'MALIK PLEASE!' **_

__The girl screams again, and this time, my eyes widen in recognition. Recognition from the dream I had yesterday, the voice belonged to Hermione…

_Of course! Hermione! Hermione, she's the answer! _I scream at myself, reminding myself to give myself a swift kick in the arse for not thinking of this earlier. Shutting my eyes as tightly as I can, I mentally reverse time in my head, going back to the day that Father first brought her back home, back home to us. The fear, the doubt… All the feelings my brother and I shared the moment we first laid eyes on her. She was finally back home; she was finally back with the people that loved her, that missed her with all of their heart.

Every day I thought about what it would be like if she was never taken from us, what our childhood would have been like and how our lives would have been impacted. And the more I thought about her absence, the more I began to hate the man that took her away from us. Voldemort. _That, that bastard… _Shutting my eyes even tighter, the tears began to form at the lids of my eyes. _Hermione, I am doing this for you!_

Shooting my eyes open, with a new found strength and will, I jab my wand upwards again, jutting above parallel. 'EXPECTO PATRONUM!' I bellow out, letting all my pint up emotions finally flood outward, focusing the energy into the tip of my wand. And, much to my surprise, my wand spits out an enormous, blinding white shield that stops the dementor in its tracks. _They took her away from you, they took Mother, and they took Hermione… _I remind myself, angering myself even further. When the thought leaves my mind, the shield expelling itself from my wand suddenly began to shape shift, morphing into some sort of animal…

Letting my focus slip only a little bit, I take my eyes off the sinister creature in front of me and place them on the tip of my wand, where the silver mist was taking form of some sort of animal. All of a sudden, taking explicit form, delicate feathers begin to appear out of the fog, connected together on large, majestic wings. The talons of the creature were the last to leave the fog, each toe equipped with large, sharp talons, ready for attack. Bending its head out its feathers, a sharp beak appears, being followed by a large bird's head, its beady eyes opening slowly as the rest of its body becomes more focused in details. _A Phoenix…. _

Letting off a mighty screech, the bird spreads its wings out, and takes flight, leaving a trail of silver mist behind it as it soars straight for the dementor. Beating its wings, the mighty bird flies circles around the dementor, creating a shield around me as it pushes the dementor back further.

Finally, with one last circle, the dementor turns around, and gently glides away.Flying full circle back to me, the phoenix flaps its noble wings on last time, thrusting it back into my wand, only leaving a small trail of the silver mist behind, allowing me once again to breath. _I did it… I managed to conjure a Patrouns…. _I think to myself, exhausted. And with the same, tired smile, I retreat my wand back into the sleeve of my shirt, and turn on heel; and jog away from the scene.

_Ok, now, I need to find someone. _I command myself, turning my ears on, listening for the faintest of noises. Hearing nothing, I shrug it off and continue to randomly take paths as they appear, somehow managing to avoid dead ends. It's here that I notice that the sun is no longer in view from the ten foot hedges, making the space inside the maze that much darker. _Oh fantastic. _

A snap to my right catches my attention, causing me to skid to a halt. _Footsteps! _I think happily to myself, turning in the direction of the sounds. A couple more paces forward, and I begin to hear indistinct voices, male voices, which eliminates the chances of me being closer to Fleur. With a couple more steps forward, I now notice that the voice or voices lack that thick Bulgarian accent that Krum has, so that only leaves the Hogwarts champions, much to my pleasure. Using my ears, I travel in the general direction that the voices are coming from, hoping they aren't moving too fast.

But, with one more sharp right, I smack directly into another person, causing me to back step backwards, clutching my head.

'Whoa mate, are you ok?' A voice says.

I look up to meet a pair of bright green eyes and flashing gold ones. _Harry and Diggory, ah, finally. _'Yeah, I'm fine, sorry about running into you Harry.' I apologize, standing up straighter. 'I'm glad I finally found you two.'

The taller, blond champion standing next to Harry shoots him a look, a look of distrust towards me. Harry mutters something I can't make out to him, and then turns back to me. 'I am too, but the two of us together haven't found anything, nothing besides a rather nasty troll.' He informs me, as he takes the lead, leading us another foggy path.

I decided against the telling him that I ran into a dementor. I've heard the stories about how he faces thousands of them last year and lived to tell the tale, so my small victory doesn't measure up to his. Besides, Diggory is here, and I can get the sense that he'd rather me keep my mouth shut. _It's understandable, after all, who wants to talk to the descendent of the most hated professor anyway? _ I think bitterly to myself as I follow Harry. _It's disgusting, how people are judged for the heritage. If we were to look at what's the same instead of what's different or strange, there would be a lot of saved lives out there. _

'Wait guys, hold up,' Harry says suddenly, holding his arms out, stopping Diggory and I in our tracks. Harry's head bolts from side to side, his ears keenly in tune to his surroundings. 'Did you all hear that?' he asks us quietly.

'Hear what?' Diggory asks, forgetting that I was there with them all together.

'Footsteps,' Harry answers, turning to face us. 'They were sluggish and heavy sounding and I heard them just over this hedge.' He says, pointing to the towering bush to his right. 'It sounded like they were coming towards us.'

And before either one of us had a chance to respond, a bright flash came flying towards us, Diggory and I only having a mere second to react and jump out of the way before the spell made contact with our skin. The spell, I concluded to be the blasting spell, flew in between our group and rammed directly into the hedge behind it, setting it ablaze. We only stood, mesmerized by the flames before turning back to each other.

'What the hell…' Diggory mutters quietly in astonishment, whipping back around to face Harry. 'What the hell was that?!' he screams, this time enraged. 'That was a spell! Mr. Phishin explicitly told us that we were not to us spells against one another! We are only to use spells in a defensive manner!' he says angrily. 'Who in their right mind would willing give up and put everyone in danger like that?!'

One single name comes to mind. _Krum. _I think bitterly to myself, spitting his name in my head. _This is probably what Karkaroff was talking about this morning, being so proud of him and all. After all, both of their mottos were, "If you can't win by playing by the rules, win by your own rules." _

Another spell, by the looks of it the same hex that was previously thrown, came hurtling towards us once again, this time barely missing Harry's arm. 'Mate, we gotta move.' I say, grabbing his arm, letting Diggory decide if he wants to follow or not. My main goal is to get Harry and I out of this alive. After all, it's Karkaroff's fault we're in here in the first place; Diggory willingly put himself in this bloody mess.

Little did we know, the attacker was following not too far behind. 'Harry, we have to strike back.' I whisper to him, loud enough so his comrade could hear as well.

'Are you barking?' Cedric hisses, his eyes narrowing. 'Do you want us all to get eliminated? I don't know about you, but _I _actually had a chance of winning this thing.' He sneers, a characteristic not trademark to his name.

'Mind you, _Diggory,' _I snap back, using the same venomous sneer he used against me. 'But Mr. Phishin said that we could only use magic to defend ourselves against anything that lies in our path. _Defense _Diggory.' I sneer, spelling out the obvious to him, finding a brilliant loophole in the rules. 'If you want to go face that monster without magic be my guest, but don't include me in your funeral service.' I say, sneering once again, letting my rare corrosive demeanor overtake my calm.

'I don't care whatever damn loophole you find _Snape!_ I am not-'

'Hey shut it!' Harry snaps, intervening. 'Cedric, I'm with Malik on this one.' Cedric's face contorts at the sound of my name. 'I want to get out of this maze in one piece, and he's right, this is for self-defense. Now are you coming with us or not? This shouldn't take very long, especially if it's three against one.'

Staring blankly in thought, Cedric absentmindedly nods his head, whipping his wand out. 'Fine, but I have the right to say that you guys charmed me into doing this.' He says quietly, his words full of menace, all directed towards me.

With our newly convinced comrade, Harry and I march back towards the oppressor. With cautious footsteps, we approach the last corner. Since I was leading the charge, I poked my head around the stiff bush, looking to see if my suspicions were correct. And, looming in the shadows of the entrance opposite from ours, they were. His stiff, rippling muscles stuck out, but his face was lowered, hidden in the shadows. But, his wand was drawn, pointed at the ready, a glinting white smirk glowing in the darkness.

Turning back to my comrades, I begin to speak to them. 'You two stay here.' I commend them, holding my hand out as a gesture. 'I want to battle him out on my own. I have some unfinished business to take care of with him.'

Harry nods understandingly, taking a step back into the darkness, but Diggory glowers at me slightly, before giving, following Harry back into the shadows. Appreciation showing in my brief smile, I turn back around, and creep around the corner, wand at the ready. I use the shadows as my cover, keeping my back pressed against the hedges. I notice that Krum is looking around, glowering at the space around him. I take this time, since he seems to not notice me, to evaluate the situation at hand.

I could always stun the guy and shoot a flare up, signaling that he needs help, but, I notice something a little off with the adversary standing before me. As his eyes whip around in search for someone to battle with, there is an unusual glint in his normally arrogant brown eyes, but, whatever it was; I can't put my finger on it. So I wait patiently for his eyes to come back in my direction. Even further left and slowing back right, and then, once we nearly make eye contact it hits me.

His eyes are solid black. There is no cornea, no retina, no pupil, nothing. His eyes are _solid black. _

I have to swallow my gasp before it reveals my position. _Holy shit… what's wrong with him?! His eyes are solid black! Think Malik, what could possibly be wrong with him? _I think to myself, wracking my brain for a possible solution. While I'm thinking of a possible reason, I scan over the situation once more.

I begin to pick up the minute details of his every action. His posture, normally straight up with his nose stuck in the air, is all hunched over in a very defensive posture. Even the way he holds his wand, in a relaxed but powerful position in the palm of his hand, was arched forward, tightly gripped in a tight fist. _I recognize that wand position… _ I say to myself, taking a closer examination of Krum's wand._ Wait a minute! That's the death eater's style of wand dueling! He has never used that style before. _Squinting to get a better look at Krum, I conclude to one thing, all of the signs point to one thing. _Krum is possessed…He's being possessed by something in the maze. _I concluded.

After drawing that same conclusion, I had to draw up a plan of action. _Alright, the best way I have of making it out of this situation without a scratch is to stun him the best I can with a surprise before he can get an upper hand on me. I remember Hermione telling me that people under possession hold a lot more power than normal. So, I have to sneak behind him. _Nodding to myself, I let the shadows swallow me again as I make my way around the maze to the other entrance, the one just behind where Krum is currently standing. Good thing for me, he doesn't think to look behind him.

_Alright, so all I have to do, is stun him… _I think to myself, trying to dumb down the situation at hand so it doesn't stress me out as much.

'Repello!' A bright yellow flash whizzes past my head, smacking its target square in the back, emitting a slight fizzing noise. Wheeling around, Diggory stood with his wand extended from his body and a proud smirk on his face.

'What the hell mate?' I yell running back towards them.

'You were taking too bloody long!' he retaliates, defending himself. 'In case you've forgotten, we're all in a race to find that goblet, and this brute was in my way. I did what I needed to remove the obstacle.' He pauses for only a moment, satisfied that the possessed man wasn't moving. 'Come on, let's get moving.'

He shoulders away from me, with Harry not much further behind. Taking my first steps behind them, I only spare one more moment to look towards Krum, until my heart froze, my body freezing with it. 'Harry,' I whisper, unable to look behind me, my eyes glued to the surrounding area where I could see. 'Harry!' I whisper more harshly, my voice coming out like a hiss.

'What?' he asks back in a normal voice, walking back towards me. One pair of footsteps, Diggory must've stayed put.

Waiting until he's reached my back, I remain still, my wand in hand. 'He's gone.'

Harry's entire body stiffens behind me, letting me know he knows exactly who I'm talking about. The swish of his wand cuts through the air, but not fast enough to protect us. Out of nowhere, we're knocked onto our backs, the attacker out of sight. 'It's Krum!'

'Thanks Diggory…' I whisper under my voice, silently cursing his name. 'He's _possessed _you bloody prat!' I scream at him, making sure my eyes were locked onto his. 'People under the influence of possession acquire powers much stronger than their original strength! One curse designed to _repel _him isn't going to eliminate the threat!'

Another spell comes flying out of nowhere, just nearly missing the top of Harry's head. _It came from back there… _I think to myself, tracing the path of the spell. Bringing my wand up, I shakily aim my wand straight towards the bush. 'Reducto!' The jagged streak of maroon lightning flies towards the bush, setting it ablaze. Immediately I push myself off the ground and bring Harry up with me. 'You go.'

He doesn't need a second command. Within a second he is on his feet, bolting towards Diggory. Following close behind him, I turn to the left, so I could see behind the bush. Lying flat on his back was Krum. Cautiously, I walk over to him, and nudge him with my foot, a little harder than necessary, to see if he remained conscious. He did not stir.

Breathing out a sigh of relief, I kneel before him and aim my wand upward. 'Incendio.' Tiny sparks of red shot upward, fanning out to create fireworks, flares. 'Petrificus Totalus' I whisper, pointing my wand down to Krum. Watching, Krum's entire body stiffens at the sound of the curse.

'What did you do that for?' Harry asks, making sure it was safe before approaching me. 'He's already down.'

'I want to make sure he doesn't follow us.' I answer back, striding forward to meet Diggory, who still remained still, like a frozen statue. 'I sent the flares up so they can retrieve him, like a distress signal.' Nodding, Harry seems satisfied with the reasoning, but Diggory still hasn't moved since he laid eyes on Krum. 'What's got your tongue in a knot?' I ask, already knowing the answer.

'I thought I knocked him out…' He whispers in disbelief, his eyes not leaving Krum's body. 'And you…' he says airily, his eyes suddenly darting towards me, his finger pointing in an accusing manner. 'Your eyes…'

_Shit… _'Yeah, they're black, I got it.' I say, waving his comment of dismissively. Nudging Harry, I begin moving forward again.

'No!' Diggory shouts, jogging to cover the distance Harry and I made. 'Your eyes were _golden_… as if they were glowing or something.'

'It was probably just a trick of the light.' I say, pointing towards the sun, which has begun its slow descent downward. 'Come on Diggory, we don't have time for your mind games. We have to get moving. We still have no idea where Fleur is. She could be close to finding it.'

Without another word, the three of us move in silence, making countless left and right turns, seemingly making no progress once so ever. And with the setting sun making it harder and harder to see, I eventually use my wand as a compass. _I just want to get out of this stupid maze… Once I'm out, I can forget this whole bloody thing ever happened… _Focusing on my breathing, I turn right, hoping we haven't been this way before. _All of these paths are beginning to look the same… _

'Do you have any idea where we are?'

I sigh loudly, wishing he would pick a different time to open up his fat mouth. 'No, _Diggory, _that's the point of a maze. You get lost and find your way out.'

'Or die trying.'

'Ok, fine. I have been going on gut instinct as to which path to take. Maybe next time I'll just flip a coin.' I say calmly back at him, not stopping to take part in his nonsense.

'You know Snape, I'm getting real tired of your-'

'Shh,' I hiss, cutting him off.

'Hey just because you're the professor's long lost bastard son doesn't mean you can boss me around-'

'I said _shut up'_ I spat louder this time, wheeling around to make sure he got the message. 'I heard something.' Turning back around, I light the top of my wand to aid my sight. Somewhere up ahead, the sound of crackling leaves reaches my ears. But, they weren't to the beat of a walking person; the sound was consistent, nonstop. It almost sounded as if someone was eating.

Taking tentative steps, I peak my head around the corner of the bush that was separating us from the sound. But, what I saw puzzled me. There was not some huge creature in my path, nor was there, _anyone _really. All I saw was a shoe. I make my way around the corner to investigate. On the ground, a baby blue shoe no bigger than the palm of my hand laid on its side. 'Looks like Fleur lost a-'

'Fleur!' Diggory comes bolting out from the other side of the shrubbery. I watch as he scrambled passed me, collapsing onto his knees. 'Fleur!'

Harry and I hustle to his side, and immediately, we are appalled by what we see. Already halfway in the bush, an unconscious Fleur was slowly being sucked up into the bush, which seemed to be eating her alive. 'Come on we have to save her!' Diggory yells at us. 'Here, grab a limb and we'll pull on three.'

Harry kneels down to help, but I grab his shoulder, shaking my head. 'Diggory, she's gone.' I state, taking note of how over half of her body is engulfed in the bush. 'Incendio,' I command, pointing my wand upward, shooting more familiar red flames towards the sky. 'There, they'll come and retrieve her, and she'll be safe.' I tell him, putting my wand away. 'Come on, we're that much closer to the cup; it's just the three of us now.'

'How could you say something like that?!' Diggory bellows, his eyes shooting lasers at me as he jerks his head around his shoulders. 'She needs our help! We can't just leave her behind because _you _ want to be crowned the victory of this tournament!'

'Hey, don't turn this around on me!' I shout back, defending myself. ' _You _were the one that wanted me gone so you could win this thing! What does the difference of a gender have to do with this?' I ask him, suddenly catching on. 'Oh I get it now…' I trail off, my eyes narrowing in evil triumph. 'Someone's got a little crush on the Veela, don't they?' I say, purposefully taunting him. 'Well, you better do something quick, she's getting' away.' I say, gesturing to body, now nearly engulfed in leaves. 'Shrubbery of doom, duh duh _duh_,' I sneer, imitating the dramatic music found in movies.

'You _son of a-_' He lunges forward, allowing me to easily dodge his attack.

A malicious smirk works its way onto my face as I dodge each one of his poorly executed punches. 'Come on, is that the best you've got?'

'Hey, _HEY!_' Harry shouts, inserting himself, his hands separating us. 'I don't know about you, but I have got better things to do than play mediator between your little cat fight. How about we focus on getting out of here first, and then you can continue this confrontation on the safety of the Hogwarts grounds.'

Throwing my hands up in defeat, I throw a look of innocence at Harry. 'Sorry Papa,' I tell him, sending a puppy dog look at him. I hear Diggory spat in agitation, but he doesn't pursue the feud any longer.

'Good,' Harry says, dropping his arms down. 'Now, come on, the sun nearly set, and we still haven't found the cup yet.' He promptly turns on his heel and strides off followed closely by Diggory and me.

We must be wandering around for another hour, and still not a sign of any goblet. There wasn't a sign of a threat or any possible danger either; just a whole ton of shrubbery. _Come _on, _we have to be getting closer by now. I thought I saw that bloke with the creepy eye point Harry in the right direction! Why haven't we found anything?_ Assuming of course that this goblet has a glow, I've been keeping my eye out for anything relating to that; my ears peeled for any sign of a threat as they were before.

But, suddenly, I began hearing faint footsteps, as I have before in this maze. But, they were so quiet and far off it was hard to tell if I was really hearing things, so I just shrugged it off and continued following Harry down yet another pathway. But, the further and further along we travelled, the more the footsteps became louder. 'Harry…' I speak up, stopping.

He stops as well. 'Yeah?'

Lighting up the end of my wand again, I turn my back towards Harry and face the direction we just came from, my shadow blocking out most of the light shining from the wand. 'Do you not hear that?' I ask them, tuning my ears into the surrounding area.

The sound of footsteps is definitely clear now and whatever was making those noises, wasn't alone. It was travelling in a pack. 'Something is following us.' I take wary footsteps, tracing the path we took before. Peering around the corner, I am met with nothing but the sight of death's cloak.

'Come on mate, you're just being paranoid.' Harry says, tugging at my shoulder. 'We're getting close, I can feel it.' He tells me. 'There isn't anything over there anyway.

But, just as those very words leave Harry's lips, my eyes meet with another pair, a dark, soulless pair. Another, then another, and another; a separate pair of eyes begins to appear in the dim light of my wand. And with each pair of eyes, a pair of aciculate k-nine teeth jarred out from their powerful jaws. 'H-harry,' I manage to squeak out, tripping over my own feet. 'We need to get out of here.'

'Why?' he asks, squinting, trying to catch of glimpse of what I saw.

A cacophonous thunder suddenly blared from the feral cats,; as the alpha stalks towards Harry and I; who quivered in fear. 'Harry,' I whisper, tugging at Harry's sleeve. 'Can we go now?'

Yanking me upward, Harry and I vamoose, hightailing it straight passed Diggory, who gave us a baffled look. 'What are you two running from?' He shouts, picking up his own pace, probably sensing that something was wrong.

'Behind you!'

It takes him no longer than a second or two to catch up to us. 'What the _bloody hell _is that thing?!' He screams, trying to take a look over his shoulder without tripping.

'It's, it's a yonggary!' I pant in between harsh breaths.

'Again, what the bloody hell is that thing?!' He screams again.

I don't bother answering; and neither does Harry. We just focus on losing these beasts; which proved nearly impossible due to their immaculate sense of smell. Turn after turn, we keep running until the three of us find ourselves face to face with a towering wall of leaves; a dead end.

'Shit, what are we going to do now?!' Harry asks in a panicked manner, his voice shaking.

_Think Malik, think! _'I, I don't know! I can't remember any of the weaknesses that Hermione told me!' I respond back, just as frustrated.

Diggory stops mid hysteria to give me a weird, distracted look. 'You know Hermione?' He asks, actually sounding curious.

'We're about to get our faces ripped off and that's what caught your attention?!' I ask, stunned that out of everything he could have heard, that's what his ears decided to pick up. That statement slapped him back into reality, back into what was about to happen to us.

_Come on, think! What were those spells that Hermione drilled you on this morning? _I think to myself, cursing silently because I couldn't remember.

_ 'Protego Totalum.'_

_ 'Protection spell, generally used for protecting large areas.' _

_ 'Banishing curse.' _

_ 'Opposite of the summoning charm. Banishes whatever object the spell is performed on.' _

_ 'Blasting Curse.'_

_ 'Causes objects to erupt in flames.'_

_ 'Conjunctivitis curse.' _

_That's it! _'Guys, I got it!' I exclaim, the memory suddenly coming back to me. 'Diggory, you're in the upper level spell classes right; you're a fifth year?' He only nods in response, not paying full attention as his eyes dart back and forth between me and the path where we just came from. 'Well, have you heard of the conjunctivitis curse, right?'

He turns to me, his attention fully on me. 'Yeah, _conjunctive _right?'

But, as the command leaves his lips, his wand responds, sending a jet stream of green light flies from the tip, striking Harry. He doubles over, his hands darting straight to the aid of his eyes, his screams piercing the night.

'What the hell Diggory?!' I scream, knowing my eyes close if not already golden. 'I knew you were a brainless prat but seriously? Do you not know how to control your own magic?' I kneel down, trying to help Harry best I could. 'Hey, hey, I know this is a dumb question but are you ok?'

'Do you think I'm ok?' He retorts back. 'It feels like someone lit the insides of my eyes on fire.'

'They're getting closer.' Diggory states quietly, ashamed of what he's done. He then positions himself in front of Harry and I, his wand drawn. 'I'll try and fend them off, if you can try and heal him.' He offers.

'Mate, I'm _blind _right now, and even I can see how useless that proposition is.' Harry spats sarcastically, clearly in no mood for him.

'Well what should I do then?' He shouts, trying to defend himself.

'Try not to look appetizing.' I sneer, my eyes not leaving Harry. 'Ok, don't freak out,' I whisper so only he can hear me. Before he has a chance to say anything, I close my eyes, and touch Harry's face with both of my hands, letting my mind explore his skin, every damaged cell. Inhaling deeply, I find the location where the spell hit Harry, and release the energy, therefore releasing the curse. 'There, feel better?' I ask, helping him stand up.

Blinking a couple of times, he brushes the dust off of himself, smiling. 'Yeah, thanks mate,' He says, smiling at me. 'Now, about them…'

In front of us, the creatures of hell finally found us, surrounding us, their low pitched growls filling the air. Diggory, with his wand at the ready, begins firing spells only designed to hold them back from ripping us limb from limb. 'So, do these things have any weaknesses?' he asks.

"_They are silent nocturnal hunters, but hate the cold because it kills their internal power and strength source…"_

_ Hermione you're a genius! _'The cold!' I exclaim, momentarily forgetting that they can't hear my inner voice. 'Yonggarys hate the cold! It weakens their internal power!'

'Ok, cool, so, we'll just sit here and wait till January.' Diggory says, flinging another protection spell towards an advancing cat. 'Oh screw it,' he exclaims. He winds his arm up, and throws a spell, causing one of the four legged beasts to erupt in flames. Quickly, that one cat flees the scene, leaving the others in a red fury. One by one, the eyes that once blended in with the night transformed into a brilliant shade of violet.

'Look down and don't make eye contact!' I scream, emitting a gasp while covering my own eyes, shielding them from the view of the demon.

'Why?'

'Don't question me just do it!' I scream back to whoever questioned me. I feel Harry cower back, but, at the same time, I feel a dense thud shake the earth next to me. Hoping the sinking feeling in my stomach was nothing more than nerves, I speak, trying to keep it as calm as possible. 'Diggory?'

No response.

'Diggory don't look into their eyes; they're in defense mode,' I inform him, hoping he can still hear me. 'Diggory?'

Still no response.

Taking another deep breath, I rack up the guts to squint my eyes open, searching for any sign of the annoying prat. My eyes travel down to where I heard the noise, and, frozen and inert, laid Diggory. Stifling another gulp, I turn to Harry.

'We need to think of something, now.' He tells me, sensing the creatures closing in.

'Ok, umm, you know the curses that blind right?' he nods in response. 'Ok, you cast those, and I'll cast the freezing spell. That should give us enough time to make a clear circumvention with Diggory's body.' _I hate the guy, but come on, I'm not the heartless one. I wouldn't want my body to be devoured by demon spawn either… _

I hear Harry's stunned gasp, but he doesn't add anything onto it. 'Ok, on three. One… two… Three!' Springing up, Harry's spells fly first, sending each of the cats into blinding pain, disabling their ability to kill us on spot.

My wand flies up seconds after his. 'Frysa!' A dark blue powder soars out of my wand, sending the temperature plummeting. The cats movements suddenly slow tenfold; but I don't take another moment to take it in. 'Grab Diggory; we have to move.'

Harry nods, and grabs the body by one of his arms. I help the body onto Harry's back, and together, we abscond, trying to put as much distance between us and those creatures as possible. 'What, happened to him?' Harry asks me as we slow our pace back down to a brisk walk.

'When a yonggary feels threatened, it's eyes turns purple, and it then possesses powers like a basilisk; it has the power to kill you on sight.' I say, reciting exactly what Hermione told me. 'In fact, now that I think about it; I think that's what happened to Krum too.' I already feel his question coming before he says it. 'When a yonggary is in need of a quick escape when surrounded by a bunch of predators such as humans, its eyes will turn red; and it will temporarily possess you, control you into being dark.' _So, that's what it feels like to be Hermione… _

Travelling in silence, Harry and I alternate carrying Diggory. We could just put him down, but, come on. He died in this so called honor of a tournament. The least we could do is bring his body back with us. And, after what seemed like endless turn after turn, something catches my eye that wasn't present in the other pathways; an eerie bluish glow.

Floating before us, was the Tri-Wizard Cup.

'Harry…' I mutter, placing Diggory's body right next to the cup. 'We… we found it!' I exclaim, wanting nothing more than to reach out and grab it. 'But, what now?' I ask, turning to him.

'You take it,' he tells me immediately. 'I'll take Cedric's body back, to make sure his body gets there alright…' he trails off, casting a look at his fallen classmate. 'His dad was here you know, took a leave on work to support his son…'

Feeling a twinge of guilt, I too look down at his body, his eyes still open but unseeing, glassed over. Kneeling down, I place my fingers over his eyes, and close his eyelids. 'You should take it Harry, add on the legacy that is Harry James Potter.' I say, slightly joking.

'Nah, my name's got enough fame to it.' He says, laughing.

I stand back up, and for the final time, I send the vibrant red flames into the air. 'At least they'll know that he made it.' I say. 'We grab it together.' I tell him. 'On three.'

'Are we even allowed to do that?' he asks, ignoring me.

'One,' I continue, ignoring him. 'Two,' I say, reaching out towards the glowing cup. 'Three.'

**THIRD PERSON**

Appearing out of nowhere, Harry and Malik, cup in hand, land abruptly and ungracefully, obtaining a mouthful of dirt. After coughing it up, the two of them stand up, and brush themselves off. 'Where are we?' Malik asks, confused. He then turns to look at the cup, which he left on the ground by his feet. 'Wait a minute, this is a portkey!' he exclaims, bending down to get a better look at it.

Harry, on the other hand, was not so easily distracted. Leaving Malik's side, he begins roaming the grounds in which he was transported to. 'I know this place…' he whispers to himself as he walks up to an old tombstone with a stone grim reaper standing upon it. 'Malik, this is the graveyard outside the school grounds…'

'Why here though?' Malik asks, taking the cup and walking over to Harry. 'I mean, there is an astounding lack of confetti, screaming, and streamers.' He jokes, hitting Harry over the shoulder. 'Come on, that's the castle over there, isn't it? Let's just make our way over there.'

With one look at his friend, Harry nods, and together the two of them begin to make their way out of the abandoned graveyard. Malik looks up as they pass the tombstone with the Grim Reaper standing on top; the hooded figure looming above them. But, as soon the stone figure was behind them, a translucent fog began creeping in on them, slowing surrounding them.

'What the hell…?' Malik says to himself, his mind throwing him back into the memory of his training.

The air was now riddled with the dense mist. Both Harry and Malik turn their heads in different directions, trying to detect the source of the mysterious fog. The full moon reflected off the mist, causing the entire graveyard to glow in the eerie light.

Then, emerging out of the fog, a man whose traits resembled that of a diseased rat appeared, holding shaking arms what looked like a dying child; the entire skeletal system poking out through the pale skin of the small body. The childlike figure then raised a bony finger, pointing the gnarled digit straight towards the two boys. A ghastly voice; weak and crackling, then spoke…

_ "Kill the spare."_


End file.
